For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him
by kakenshin-sensei
Summary: Sasuke Uchiha is a cold, bitter teen who has closed himself off from the rest of the world. When a certain blond enters his life, however, he begins to open up once again. High School, AU, NaruxSasu, yaoi
1. For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him

Well, here's the first chapter of my second story. For those of you who read my first piece, I warn you again that this is yaoi, and will be different. Yes, it is a high school AU fic, but I hope to add something new to this, so enjoy!

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1. For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him

Sasuke Uchiha sat lazily at his lunch table, resting his head on his hand as he stared off into space. He was not bored, per se, but simply disinterested in what was going on around him. Glancing around the crowded cafeteria, the Uchiha could see his peers talking in their little cliques, from the jocks talking loudly in the center to the nerdier students doing their homework in the corner. What Sasuke feared the most, however, were the fangirls, who were currently prowling the cafeteria searching for their prey.

It was for this reason that Sasuke had chosen to sit in the back of the cafeteria, hoping that he might remain hidden long enough to enjoy his lunch in peace. As he poked at his cold pasta with a fork, though, it became clear to the Uchiha that he would not be able to eat regardless of the fangirls' presence.

"Having fun, Sasuke?"

Without even glancing up from his food, Sasuke gave a half-hearted chuckle before responding dryly. "It's not like you to start up a conversation so willingly, Shikamaru."

Taking a seat across from the raven-haired boy, Shikamaru, slouched forward and rested his head on the table. "Hey, it's troublesome, but it's my duty as your friend to make sure everything's all right."

"I guess there's no sense in trying to hide something from you, is there?" Sasuke sighed, finally looking his lazy friend in the eye. "It's Sakura and the rest of those banshees again…"

"Don't give me that," Shikamaru said curtly, eyeing the Uchiha suspiciously. "They've been looking all over for you today. One of them was afraid you had moved away over the summer. Now what's really going on?"

_Damn… I thought I had him with that, too…_

"Okay, you got me," Sasuke started, leaning in closer so that he and the Nara could speak in private. "It's just… well, it's our junior year. I guess I'm wondering if this is really worth it, that's all."

"Welcome to my world," Shikamaru stated with a sarcastic smirk.

"I don't mean it like that," the Uchiha replied defensively. "Look, I know my education is important and all that. If I'm going to help Itachi with the company, I'll have to have those skills… but I'm just not sure if it's what I want."

"Oh?" the lazy genius asked, though his face showed no surprise. "The Great Uchiha is going through an existential crisis, huh?"

"See, I knew you wouldn't understand," Sasuke muttered, shaking his head in frustration as he turned away from his friend. "I don't know why you picked today to get so nosy, but –"

"Take it easy, Sasuke… I was just joking," Shikamaru said consolingly, placing a hand on his friend's shoulder. "I know what you mean. Sometimes it feels like we have no real control over our lives. Don't forget, my parents are sending me here from halfway across the country. You think I want to have that kind of pressure on me?"

"Of course not," Sasuke replied, his moodiness shining through in his tone. "You'd rather just live a nice, simple life and go wherever the wind takes you…"

"Exactly," the Nara continued, choosing to ignore the raven-haired teens sarcasm. "You're feeling this way because you don't want to be forced down a path that you'll regret later in life."

_How does he know all of this?_

"I had a similar problem a few years ago, but I decided it was just too troublesome to think about," Shikamaru stated with a matter-of-fact tone, as if he had somehow read the Uchiha's thoughts. "Trust me, all you need to do is find something that's worth living for, and the rest will sort itself out."

"If you say so," Sasuke said flippantly, his gaze shifting back to his cold meal.

"Hey, I'm your friend, Sasuke. You'll get through this just fine," Shikamaru said reassuringly as he rose from his seat. "Unlike me, you're actually motivated. If you just keep your eyes open, I'm sure you'll find that reason to keep going."

_I guess that's true. Maybe if I stop shutting out the world all the time, I'll find something that I really care about… wait a second, that doesn't sound like Shikamaru…_

"Kakashi asked you to talk to me, didn't he?"

Shikamaru stopped dead in his tracks and turned to his friend with a sheepish smirk. "Was it that obvious?"

"I thought something was fishy when you actually started a conversation for once. Now what did he tell you to say?"

"Nothing, nothing," the Nara replied, waving his hands dismissively. "He just noticed you were acting strange in English and wanted to know if something was wrong."

"And now I take it you're going to deliver your report?" Sasuke asked with a suspicious glare.

"He's just concerned about you, Sasuke. Like I said, we're your friends. It's what we do," Shikamaru explained before turning his back on the raven-haired boy once more. "And here I thought I might get to watch some clouds during lunch…"

As the lazy genius known as Shikamaru disappeared into the crowded cafeteria, Sasuke finally threw away his lunch and slouched down in his chair once more, a familiar scowl upon his face.

_Friends… I never asked for any friends. They know how I feel about that… why can't they just leave me alone? Why can't they understand that I don't want to lose someone like that again…_

"Sasuke?"

"Oh my God, it _is_ Sasuke!"

"Back off, Ino! I saw him first!"

"Get the hell out of my way! All of you! He's mine!"

Sasuke recognized the distinct screeching of his fanclub almost immediately. For a moment he considered running away, but he knew that such acts of desperation would only incite a stampede. Thus, he tried simply to ignore the girls, hoping that they might finally take a hint and go die in a fire.

"Sasuke, you had us worried," a pink-haired girl cooed in an almost disgustingly sweet way. "We hadn't seen you all day… we thought you might be sick or something."

_I wish…_

"What Sakura means to say, Sasuke, is that we're so glad that we found you," a blond girl replied, giving the first speaker a dangerous glare. "We have so much to catch up on, like how your summer went, when you plan to go out with me, what your feelings are on girls with unnatural hair color."

"Shut up, Ino! Sasuke doesn't want to go out with you, he wants to go out with me, right Sasuke?" Sakura interrupted, pushing the blond's face into the wall.

_God, just kill me now…_

"Don't tell Sasuke what he wants, Sakura. He's perfectly capable of handling his romantic life. Now, Sasuke, when did you say you'd go out with me, again?"

_If only there were some way I could get them out of my hair…_

"Ladies, ladies, there's no need to fight. There's plenty of me to go around," Sasuke said, laying on the patented Uchiha charm as he had seen his brother do on countless occasions. "Look, I'll tell you what I'll do. I'm going to write down a place and time on two pieces of paper. Whatever place and time you get, that's when I'll meet you for our date, all right?"

"Oh, Sasuke. That sounds like a fantastic idea!" Sakura replied, clearly ecstatic at the thought of a date with the famous Uchiha.

"You have to promise me, though, that you won't open these until tomorrow, okay? Otherwise it'll ruin the surprise."

"Sure, Sasuke. Whatever you say," Ino said, trying her best to match her rival's enthusiasm.

_Perfect… "Meet me in hell, once it freezes over – Sasuke"_

Scribbling his message down quickly, Sasuke soon had given each of his "dates" their scrap of paper, at which point they took off, lest the raven-haired boy change his mind. Having rid himself of the two most persistent of the fangirls, Sasuke was now able to send the other girls off with similar false promises of future dates, until he was left in peaceful solitude.

_I'll have to remember to thank Itachi for this later… at least that bastard's good for something…_

Just as this thought crossed his mind, Sasuke heard the distinct ringing of the school bell, signaling the end of lunch. He let out an irritated sigh and slowly rose from his seat, following his peers as they filed out of the cafeteria. No sooner had the Uchiha left the lunchroom, however, than he saw a set of feet heading his way at an astounding rate. Before Sasuke could so much as look up, though, he felt the oncoming person ram headfirst into his nose, sending the raven-haired boy to the ground in a shower of blood.

After landing hard on the cold floor, Sasuke sat up with a groan and wiped at his stinging nose in irritation. It was only when he found his hand stained a distinct shade of red that the Uchiha realized that he was bleeding, at which point his attention switched to his assailant with dangerous intensity. He had not recognized the boy before, but now that Sasuke saw the attacker up close, he finally noticed the distinct, blond hair, which was now spattered with Uchiha blood.

_Naruto…_

"Naruto, you idiot! What do you think you're doing ramming into Sasuke like that?"

Looking slightly to his left, Sasuke found that a familiar pink-haired girl was standing over his shoulder, stomping towards Naruto with clenched fists. Before long, the blond had taken a number of blows and was cowering against the lockers while the other fangirls struggled to restrain Sakura.

"I'm sorry, Sakura! I wasn't paying attention…"

"Yeah, I can tell! What the hell's the matter with you? What if you broke his nose, Naruto?!"

"I didn't mean to, I swear…"

Sasuke looked back and forth between Sakura and Naruto as many passing students stopped in their tracks to watch the argument unfold. It was drawing far too much attention for the Uchiha, especially when he was trying to keep a low profile. Realizing this, Sasuke rose to his feet and stepped between Sakura and the blond, gritting his teeth in anger as he struggled to regain control of the situation.

"That's enough, Sakura," Sasuke muttered, his gaze fixed on the vulpine boy before him. "I'll deal with Naruto here myself."

Naruto gulped visibly at the Uchiha's dark tone and forced himself to grin sheepishly. "Hey, Sasuke… how's it goin'?

"Is that all you have to say?" Sasuke asked, tilting his head slightly to the side.

"Look, I'm sorry. It's not like I meant to hit you or anything," Naruto said defensively.

Sasuke continued to stare down at the blond for a few tense moments before turning his back on him with huff.

"Whatever. I don't need to waste my breath on you."

With that last little affirmation of his superiority, Sasuke started for the bathroom to wash up, his fanclub following after him in renewed awe. As he sat washing the drying blood from his face, however, the Uchiha remained completely oblivious that he had just ran into the love of his life.

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Well, there you have it. First chapter. Reviews and comments are very helpful, and I hope you will continue reading. Until next time! Also, kudos to who can guess the inspiration for the title.


	2. The Dangling Conversation

2. The Dangling Conversation

As Naruto Uzumaki stepped out of Konoha High to greet the late summer afternoon, his mind remained focused on his earlier encounter with a certain Uchiha. He hadn't really thought about it at the time, but it now occurred to the blond that he had never even asked to make sure if Sasuke was all right. Even though he and Sasuke did not exactly get along all that well, it was unacceptable to do someone harm and try to brush it off with a joke. He would have to apologize to the Uchiha, that much was clear, but of course this left Naruto with another problem: what in the world could he say to make things right?

"Something bothering you, Naruto?"

Naruto snapped out of his reverie at the sound of his name and looked over his shoulder to find a brown-haired boy with a big, toothy grin walking beside him. "Oh, hey, Kiba. How long have you been there?"

"Since we left school. You seemed a little distracted, so I decided not to bother you," Kiba said, placing a hand on the blond's shoulder to force him to a stop. "Now, do you want to tell me what the hell's going on?"

Naruto stared up at the boy for a minute, amazed by how observant he could be in spite of his carefree attitude. When he thought about it, they were a lot alike: both were sub-par students sent to the most prestigious high school in the region by their over-enthusiastic parents, they both had a similar happy-go-lucky view on life, and both were quite terrible at masking their emotions. Knowing this, Naruto did not even try to beat around the bush, but instead looked straight ahead and started walking once more with a sigh.

"All right… I was just thinking about that… thing with Sasuke earlier."

"Oh, yeah, I heard about that! Hit him right in the nose!" Kiba exclaimed, giving a quick punch at the air. "'Bout time someone brought the bastard down a peg…"

_Oh, God… what kind of rumors are going around now… _"No, no, no! It was an accident. I wasn't paying attention and I ran right into him. I never really apologized to him, though, so I just thought –"

"Okay, okay, I get it already," Kiba said, patting his friend on the back. "You feel guilty. I was just giving you a hard time. So, I take it you're gonna go over and talk to him?"

"Well, I don't know… I mean, what would I say? He probably will just slam the door in my face."

"So what? I'd be surprised if he didn't," Kiba replied with a flash of his fanged smile. "At least you would've tried, right? Who cares what that bastard thinks?"

Naruto considered this for a second, realizing that, in spite of how crazy it sounded, Kiba had a point. It was better to at least apologize and get rejected than not to try at all. Glancing to the side, the blond returned his friend's grin, saying. "You know what, you're right? I'm gonna apologize to Sasuke whether he likes it or not."

With that, Naruto took off running with renewed determination. Even if Sasuke decided to refuse the blond's attempts, at least he could sleep that night with a cleared conscience. Before he got too far, however, Naruto came to an abrupt halt and turned to face Kiba sheepishly.

"Hey, you wouldn't happen to know where Sasuke lives, would you?"

Kiba laughed and shook his head briefly before replying. "He lives over on the other side of town. It's the big house, you can't miss it."

_Big house…_ "Okay, got it!" Naruto replied cheerily as he started running once more, leaving a dumbfounded Inuzuka standing alone with his thoughts.

"You amaze me, Naruto… you really do…"

xxxxxx

"Have a fun day at school, Sasuke?"

"Go to hell."

It was the usual conversation Sasuke had with his beloved brother, Itachi, when he returned from school. As soon as the younger Uchiha stepped in the door, he could count on his brother to be waiting at the kitchen table, a delightfully obnoxious smirk on his face. Today, though, Sasuke was still dealing with the blood occasionally running from his nose, and as a result wanted nothing more than for Itachi to jump off a cliff.

"Well, well, aren't we in a testy mood today," Itachi said as he intently painted his fingernails a fine shade of black.

"I really don't want to talk about it," Sasuke replied, shooting his brother a dangerous glare.

"Ah, love trouble? You don't need to hide it from me, Sasuke. We all go through it at some point…"

"I had a little accident at school, if you must know," the young Uchiha interrupted with an exasperated sigh.

"I see, and here I just assumed that the bloody nose was from a pretty girl," Itachi continued, his eyes still fixed on his ebony nails.

For a moment, Sasuke considered arguing with his brother further, but ultimately decided that it was not worth the effort. Thus, he simply stormed off and stomped up the stairs to his room, throwing his backpack on the floor as he fell on the bed in exhaustion.

_Why do I always have to give that asshole the satisfaction of watching me squirm?_ _I need to learn to just let it go…_

Sasuke rolled over onto his stomach and buried his face in his pillow as he reflected on his day. Over all, for the first day of school, it had been an utter train wreck. The young Uchiha knew that it would have been terrible regardless, but that incident with Naruto, coupled with Kakashi's meddling, did not improve matters at all.

_What the hell does Kakashi think he's doing, anyway? Did he expect me to be all bright and bubbly on the first day of school or something? And then he has to use Shikamaru to get to me… what, did he think I'd lie to him or something?_

The more Sasuke thought about it, though, the more he knew that he would have lied had Kakashi asked him upfront. It wasn't that Sasuke didn't trust the man or anything; after all, Kakashi had acted like a father towards the Uchiha brothers after their parents' untimely death. The fact of the matter was, the raven-haired boy simply wanted to keep some things to himself. Kakashi clearly knew this, though, and sent Shikamaru, the one person in the world that Sasuke actually confided in.

_He knew exactly what he was doing… and it worked. Dammit all… and now Shikamaru's suddenly concerned about me. Where did that come from? Did he have an epiphany over the summer or what?_

"Sasuke! You have a visitor!"

The sudden sound of Itachi's voice forced Sasuke back to reality, causing him to sit up rather irritably. Who could possibly be visiting him now? Kakashi was probably still at school, and it wasn't like Shikamaru to go out of his way to chat. Then again, if that day had been any indication, Sasuke's evaluation of the Nara might have been a bit off.

All of this passed through the young Uchiha's mind as he stomped down the stairs, shooting his brother a nasty glare as he descended. As soon as he stepped into the mansion's rather large vestibule, however, Sasuke realized that the visitor was neither Kakashi nor Shikamaru, but rather an all-too familiar blond.

"Naruto."

"H-hey, Sasuke," the vulpine boy replied, a distinctly nervous smile on his face.

"Well, I'll leave the two of you alone," Itachi said, smirking at the obvious tension between the two teens.

Once the elder Uchiha had left the room, Sasuke turned his icy glare to the new arrival, noting a distinct sting in his nose as he did so. "What the hell do you want?"

Naruto flinched visibly at Sasuke's question before speaking. "Umm… well, I just wanted to apologize for what happened earlier today. I wasn't paying attention, so I just wanted to tell you that I'm sorry, and if there's anything I can do to make up for it…"

"Anything you can do?" the raven-haired boy interrupted, stepping towards the blond dangerously. "You can start by doing us all a favor and getting the hell out of here."

"W-what do you mean, Sasuke?"

_Perfect, he took the bait…_

"What, like you don't know?" Sasuke replied with a derisive laugh. "We all know who you are, Naruto. You're the son of that Kyuubi guy. You think we want someone like that bringing down the reputation of our school?"

"B-but I had nothing to do with that," Naruto protested, his eyes welling up with tears.

"That doesn't matter. The fact is you're the son of a murderer, a monster. How do you think I feel being associated with someone like you after today?"

"B-but…"

"Shut up! If you want to make up for running into me earlier, why don't you just go call your mommy and tell her to pick you up, alright?" With that Sasuke threw open the door standing off to the side with mock courtesy. "Right this way."

Naruto stared at Sasuke for a moment, trying hard to stifle his tears before finally giving in and rushing out the door, his sobs echoing throughout the Uchiha mansion. As the blond ran into the distance, wiping his eyes quite pitifully, Sasuke felt a sudden pang of regret and sealed the door shut in horror.

_My God… what have I done?_

xxxx

Kiba Inuzuka sat on the couch in his apartment, watching some deliciously trashy television, his pet dog, Akamaru, curled up in a ball in his lap. He absently stroked the dog's fur while occasionally glancing over at the clock, a slight frown on his face. It had been over two hours since Naruto left to go talk to Sasuke, and the Inuzuka had a sinking feeling in his gut that something was amiss. Moments after this though crossed his mind, however Kiba heard the front door swing open, at which point he rose off the couch in anticipation.

"Naruto, is that you?"

"Hi, Kiba," Naruto replied rather morosely as he poked his head through the door.

"Where the hell have you been? I was worried about you!" Kiba exclaimed as he made his way over to his roommate. As he drew closer, however, the dog-boy noticed a distinct wetness on Naruto's cheeks, at which point his concern increased tenfold. "Wait a second, have you been crying?"

"What? No, there was just something in my eyes," Naruto replied, rubbing his cheeks vigorously with his shirtsleeve.

"Don't give me that bullshit. What happened?"

Naruto sighed and took a seat on the couch, a concerned Akamaru leaping into his lap. "Well, I went over and apologized to Sasuke, just like you said, and… and…"

"What? And what?" Kiba pressed, taking a seat beside his friend.

"He told… he told me that everyone would be better off without me," Naruto said, fresh tears running down his face. "He said I'm just the son of a murderer… that I'll never be anything more than a monster…"

At this point, Naruto could not continue any longer and began to sob uncontrollably into Kiba's shoulder. Not knowing what else to do, the dog-boy began to pat the blond's head consolingly, while his other hand formed a rather tight fist.

"Don't worry, Naruto. I'll give that bastard an ass-kicking he'll never forget tomorrow. No one messes with my friends like th–"

"No!" Naruto exclaimed, surprising both Kiba and himself in the process. "I mean, it's okay. Sasuke was just mad… I'm sure he didn't mean it."

Kiba stared at his roommate in disbelief for a moment, not knowing quite what to say. "Naruto, you can't be serious. You can't just let him get away with this."

"Kiba, really, it's all right. I mean… I think we should just let it go this time."

The Inuzuka eyed Naruto suspiciously as he rose from the couch, feeling certain that there was something else that the blond wasn't telling him. After a few seconds, though, he felt satisfied and whistled quickly for Akamaru, leaving an exhausted Naruto to fall fast asleep on the couch.

_I'll ask him more about it tomorrow…_


	3. Superficial Sighs

Well, here's the third chapter of For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him. I'd like to thank all of you for reading so far, and especially those of you who've reviewed. Every comment is extremely helpful! Well, on with the chapter!

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3. Superficial Sighs

Sasuke sat in class the next day, feeling far more distracted than usual. Not that it made a difference in the quality of his schoolwork. Even if he was clearly daydreaming, he would always know the answer if the teacher asked him a question. Just one of the benefits of being an Uchiha, he supposed.

Yes, the raven-haired boy was troubled as a result of the tongue-lashing he had given Naruto the day before. Normally such things didn't bother him; after all, he had told two girls to go to hell the day before via a personal note. This thing with Naruto, though, was somehow different. Try as he might, he simply could not shake off his newfound guilt.

_Why did I even yell at him in the first place? He was trying to apologize to me, right? What did he say? Nothing… he did nothing to deserve that. I was just angry… but to bring up Kyuubi like that… that was low. Not even Itachi would sink to that level._

It was this thought in particular that troubled Sasuke more than any other, for the possibility that he might be worse than his ruthless brother was utterly horrifying. Sasuke tried to convince himself that he was wrong. It didn't matter what Naruto thought; he was a nobody, just like everyone else at Konoha High. Sure, Sasuke was harsh, but what did it matter in the grand scheme of things? To him, Mr. Uzumaki was just another speed bump on the road of life.

As the day progressed, however, Sasuke realized that this wasn't the case. That little encounter with Naruto had really bothered him, and the Uchiha knew that it would keep eating at him unless he talked about it with someone. Almost without realizing it, Sasuke made his way outside the building when lunchtime came around, and soon found himself standing beside one Shikamaru Nara. Without a word, he sat down beside the teen and stared up at the clouds as they drifted along, an event that became had become their special routine over the years.

They sat like that for quite some time, simply watching the clouds, as if there were no worries in either of their lives. To be honest, Sasuke wasn't sure if Shikamaru _did_ have any troubles of his own. The Nara never really talked about them, Sasuke never asked, and they were just fine with that. They respected each other's privacy, for the most part, except for when Kakashi used Shikamaru to pry into the Uchiha's business.

Aside from that one incident, however, the two maintained an unusual relationship, where personal information was only revealed when the confessor was prepared. This suited Sasuke, since he did not like to be forced into sharing his secrets. That's why they were secrets, after all, so that he could keep them to himself until he was ready.

On this day, though, Sasuke knew that he had to share what he was thinking with someone, and Shikamaru seemed to pick up on this instantly.

"Something on your mind, Sasuke?" the Nara said with a sigh.

_Damn, he's good._

"Well, sort of," Sasuke replied, glancing at his friend. Before he could go any further, though, the Uchiha shook his head. "No, never mind. It's nothing."

"All right," Shikamaru said before turning his attention back to the clouds.

Sasuke was relieved that he had at least a little while to formulate his thoughts. It wasn't that he didn't want to talk to Shikamaru, because he did, but at the same time he wanted to at least have an idea of what his problem was. It was such a foreign feeling for the Uchiha, this guilt over a chance encounter with someone, that he needed to make sure he knew what he was really feeling.

"Shikamaru… I lied," Sasuke concluded after a few minutes.

"I figured as much," the Nara replied, sitting up with a groan. "So what's up?"

Sasuke felt embarrassed just thinking about his predicament, and averted his gaze to the side as he spoke. "Well, I'm sure you heard about my little run-in with Naruto yesterday…"

"Oh yeah… I only had to hear about that from everyone in your fanclub. What about it?"

"Well, the thing is, Naruto stopped by my house yesterday to apologize."

"Okay," Shikamaru said, trying to piece together Sasuke's situation. "So what's the problem?"

_Dammit, why is this so hard?_

"I don't know what was wrong with me, Shikamaru… maybe I was just mad at Itachi or something," Sasuke began, his tone becoming increasingly frustrated. "But when Naruto tried to apologize to me, I pretty much told him to go to hell."

"Pretty much?" Shikamaru asked, realizing that there was more to the story than was being told. "What _exactly_ did you tell him?"

_Here goes nothing…_

"I told him that we'd all be better off without him, that he was just the son of a murderer and would never amount to anything…"

Having finally gotten everything off his chest, Sasuke lay back on the hill, feeling strangely relieved.

"I see," Shikamaru said, furrowing his brow in thought. "So, if I'm not mistaken, you're feeling guilty because you used Kyuubi against him, and now you want to know what you should do. Am I on the right track?"

Sasuke continued to stare vacantly at the sky, but felt a deep amazement at his friend's intuition. "That's about it, yeah."

"Well, have you tried talking to Naruto?"

The question caught Sasuke completely off guard. He had never even considered apologizing to the blond. "I can't do that… he wouldn't even give me a chance…"

"Sasuke, listen; I know Naruto. He would've punched most people's lights out for bringing up Kyuubi like that. You don't appear to be harmed in any way, though, so I'll assume that he ran away, right?"

Sasuke gave a quick nod before Shikamaru continued. "Okay, so basically you can bet, at the very least, Naruto respects you. He didn't just want to apologize out of fear, he actually wanted your forgiveness. I highly doubt that if you went and tried to apologize to you that he would throw it back in your face. It's just not the kind of guy he is."

"No, that's just how I am," Sasuke murmured darkly.

In spite of the Uchiha's efforts, though, Shikamaru heard his mumblings quite easily. "No, Sasuke, that's not the kind of person you are, either. You might not care about what others think, and that's fine, but you're not a sadist. If you were, you wouldn't be talking to me about this."

Sasuke stared at his friend in awe, dumbfounded at how the Nara could understand the situation so fully after hearing only a fraction of the problem. Even though he knew that Shikamaru was right, though, the Uchiha stubbornly clung to his lingering doubt.

"How can you be so sure he'll forgive me?"

"I do have friends besides you, Sasuke," Shikamaru replied with a smirk, "Just trust me; if you apologize to Naruto, and you mean it, he'll forgive you."

It was a fact that the raven-haired boy had not considered before, but now he remembered that he had seen Shikamaru talking with Naruto frequently in the past. Somehow he had never realized that the two were friends, though now he felt rather foolish for not seeing it earlier. Now that he was aware of this fact, however, Sasuke felt that he could trust Shikamaru's judgment, even if he himself remained apprehensive. Thus, with a slight sigh, the Uchiha rose off the ground and started back towards the school, only to hear his friend call out after him.

"Just promise me you won't hurt him again."

Sasuke pretended not to hear the Nara but continued, his stride not wavering in the slightest. Deep down, however, he felt a great churning in his gut at the prospect of what lay before him. This wasn't just about him and Naruto anymore; now his friendship with Shikamaru was on the line.

_What if I mess this up… Shikamaru will never forgive me. He'll just leave me, like everyone else. Dammit… why does everything have to be so fucking complicated?_

Sasuke knew it was ridiculous to think such things. Shikamaru was too good a friend to abandon the Uchiha like that, but it didn't make the threat any less real. As irrational as it was, Sasuke did not want to risk losing what bonds he still had, not again.

Thus, it was with a sense of renewed determination that Sasuke spent the rest of his school day, hoping that he might find an opportunity to talk to the blond. Despite the fact that they had several classes together throughout the day, though, the Uchiha was never able to approach Naruto. The elusive boy would show up just as class began and would leave the second the bell rang, leaving Sasuke scrambling to catch up with him every time. It soon became clear that Naruto was avoiding him, a fact that frustrated the Uchiha greatly.

_I swear… if he keeps this up much longer I'll kill him. Shikamaru would understand._

Fortunately, as the last class of the day let out, Sasuke was able to follow his target as he weaved through the crowded hallways of Konoha High, keeping back a fair distance, lest he be discovered prematurely. Soon, he had tracked the blond outside, where he knew he could talk to him one-on-one. Just as the Uchiha started running, though, he felt a sharp tug on his shoulder, which caused him to spin around on his heel. Looking up in indignation, Sasuke found himself staring into the eyes of another angry-looking teen, whose fang-like teeth were bared menacingly.

"Hey, Uchiha, just who I was looking for."

Sasuke tried to pry the offending teen's hand from his shoulder, but found that it would not budge. "I'm sorry, do I know you?"

"The name's Kiba Inuzuka." The boy replied, his teeth still gritting with his suppressed rage. "I believe you've met my roommate, Naruto?"

_Shit… I knew I recognized this kid…_

"Look, I'm sorry about what happened yesterday," Sasuke began, fearing that a confrontation might hurt his chances at forgiveness. "If you'd just let me talk to him–"

"Ha! Fat chance!" Kiba spat, his glare intensifying, "You're not getting anywhere near Naruto until I show you what happens when you mess with my friends."

Before Sasuke could protest any further, he felt the teen's fingers dig into his shoulders, causing him to wince in pain as he was hurled to the ground. The impact was greater than the Uchiha had anticipated, knocking the wind out of him and forcing him to focus on recovering for a moment. By the time Sasuke had turned his attention back to his assailant, Kiba was lunging at the raven-haired boy with a blur of a fist. In that brief instant, Sasuke quickly rolled to the side as Kiba's punch came crashing into the earth.

"Hmph, why don't you just taking your beating like a man, Uchiha," Kiba said with a cocky smirk. "Or are you afraid that I'll damage that pretty face of yours?"

_Dammit… I really want to beat the hell out of this kid…_

"I don't want to fight you," Sasuke groaned, picking himself up off the ground. "Just tell me where Naruto is."

"I already told you, I'm not letting you get near him. Now stay still!"

Naturally, Sasuke realized he could not get through to his opponent, and was forced to hop back to dodge the dog-boys incoming punch. Kiba was surprisingly fast on his feet, though, and was soon upon the Uchiha once again. It caught Sasuke off guard, and before he could move out of the way, he felt Kiba's fist connected with his cheek. The raven-haired boy was knocked to the ground, a thin stream of blood running from the corner of his mouth, and seconds later his limbs were pinned to the ground by his opponent. Staring up at the Inuzuka in irritation, Sasuke spat a bit of blood onto the ground beside him, prepared to take his beating.

_Well, I guess I deserve this…_

"Kiba, stop!"

Hearing this voice calling out so abruptly, Kiba stopped his punch mere inches from the Uchiha's face. Sasuke turned his head slightly to the side, where he found a familiar blond running towards them, waving his hand wildly as he approached.

_Naruto?_

"Naruto," Kiba greeted with a half-hearted smile. "W-what's up?"

"What the hell do you think you're doing, Kiba?" the blond asked, looking back and forth between the two combatants. "I thought I told you to leave Sasuke alone?"

_He said what now?_

"Naruto, I couldn't just let him get away with what he did," Kiba answered, stepping off of the Uchiha as he spoke.

Naruto sighed and placed a hand on his roommate's shoulder. "Thank you, Kiba. It means a lot to know you're looking out for me… but this is something I have to handle myself, all right?"

Kiba eyed Sasuke suspiciously for a moment, clearly torn as to what he should do, before turning back to the blond. "Okay, I understand. If you're not back home in an hour though, I'm coming lookin' for you."

"Got it," Naruto replied with a quick nod.

With that, Kiba started off for his apartment, and soon had vanished over the crest of the hill. Having broken up the fight, Naruto then turned his attention back to Sasuke with a guilty grin on his face.

"Sorry about that…"

_Good, at least he's not mad at me…_

"It's fine," Sasuke replied, wiping some of the blood from his lip as he lifted himself off the ground. "I guess I had it coming."

The two stood there for a second, neither one knowing exactly what to say. Sasuke looked to the side and scratched his head nervously, while Naruto shifted his feet, like he had something on his shoe. Finally, the Uchiha broke the silence, though his voice sounded rather faint.

"Naruto… that stuff I said yesterday… I didn't mean it."

"I know you didn't," the blond responded, his voice wavering somewhat. "But… it still hurts, you know?"

_Damn, this dobe can make you feel guilty…_

"I want to make it up to you," Sasuke said, flinching slightly as he remembered hearing similar words the day before. "I'll understand if you want to just throw everything back in my face, but I want to at least try. I was wrong to talk about Kyuu… well… to say what I said. I'm sorry."

_Wow, that was a lot harder than I thought…_

Naruto contemplated the Uchiha's offer for a moment, scratching his cheek absently as he mulled things over. Soon, though, he was struck with an idea, which he expressed with a snap of his fingers.

"I've got it!" he said with a grin, "You can buy me dinner!"

_Dinner?_

"Okay, sure… where exactly did you have in mind?"

"Well, Ichiraku Ramen, of course!" Naruto replied, before turning around to march into the distance.

As Sasuke watched the blond disappear over the hill, he could not help but wonder what he had gotten himself into.

---

There you have it. I hope you enjoyed it, and remember: review!


	4. Parsley, Sage, Rosemary, and Thyme

All right, everyone, here's Chapter 4. I forgot last time to compliment Kabetz on noticing the Simon and Garfunkel theme for the chapter titles. So, yeah, kudos to you, Kabetz! I want to thank the rest of you for reading too, though, and for reviewing. It's all so very helpful. Well, here we go!

* * *

4. Parsley, Sage, Rosemary, and Thyme

Sasuke Uchiha sat in his room later that evening, waiting for a certain blond to show up so that he could eat his ramen and put all of this nasty business behind him. Of course, Sasuke wasn't even sure if Naruto was going to come, as they had never specified where they were meeting, when, or how they would get there. The Uchiha certainly didn't know where Ichiraku Ramen was; in fact, he had never even heard of the place, and he had been living in Konoha his entire life. Thus, Sasuke had little choice but to wait and hope that Mr. Uzumaki would show up, lest the tensions grow worse between the two.

_Come on, Naruto… don't make this a bigger pain in the ass than it already is…_

Suddenly, the distinct, two-tone chime of the doorbell signaled that the blond had, indeed, arrived, and the Uchiha forced himself off the bed and began to trudge down the stairs. Much to Sasuke's delight, Itachi was working late that night and was not there to harass his little brother as he usually did. Thus, when the raven-haired boy threw open the door, it was with a surprisingly good mood, and he even managed to smirk upon seeing his companion's broad grin.

"Hey, Sasuke!" Naruto exclaimed with a quick wave of his hand. "You hungry?"

"Starving," the Uchiha replied as he locked the door shut behind him. "This ramen place better be good."

"You mean you've never been?" the astonished boy exclaimed, as if it were blasphemy to consider such a thing. "Well then, you're in for a treat. It probably has the best ramen in the world. I'd eat there every day if I could, but Iruka says that he isn't paying to send me here just so I can drown myself in ramen."

"Iruka?" Sasuke asked as the two started down the road.

"Yeah, my dad," Naruto elaborated, gazing up at the trees as he thought. "He adopted me when I was six or seven… you know… after Kyuubi."

"Oh," Sasuke said dumbly, averting his eyes from the blond.

_That took a bad turn…_

"What's with you all of a sudden?" Naruto asked, casting a sideways glance at his companion. "Something I said?"

"No, no," the Uchiha began, only to feel himself break under the blond's gaze. "Well… it's just… I know how much it must hurt to think about that."

"Think about what? Kyuubi?" the vulpine boy said with a slight chuckle, "That was a long time ago, Sasuke. I mean, sure it hurts, but that doesn't mean I can't talk about it."

Sasuke was taken aback by Naruto's sentiment, especially considering the way the blond had reacted the last time Kyuubi was brought up in his presence. For a second he simply stared at Naruto in disbelief, trying to understand how he could change so suddenly, but soon he realized that Mr. Uzumaki's smile was, in fact, even broader than usual. It was a slight difference, admittedly, but it was nothing that Sasuke could not pick out with his sharp, Uchiha vision.

_He's covering it up? Is that why he's always grinning like an idiot?_

It was a possibility that Sasuke had never thought of before. Naruto had been nothing more than a dobe in the past, but just that subtle change in the blond's exaggerated smile brought whole new layer to the surface.

"Yoohoo! Sasuke! You there?"

Becoming suddenly aware of the hand waving in his face, Sasuke snapped out of his reverie and focused his attention back on the blond. "Huh? What is it, now?"

"You spaced out for a minute there. I thought you were sleepwalking or something," Naruto replied with a playful smirk.

_Damn, was I that obvious?_

"I'm sorry," the raven-haired boy said, hoping that Naruto would not press the issue any further.

"Don't worry about it. But you never did answer my question."

_He asked a question?!_

"Umm… what was that, again?"

"I asked about yourparents," Naruto started, resting his hands behind his head. "I saw your brother yesterday, but it didn't look like anyone else was home…"

"They're dead," came Sasuke's curt response. The Uchiha did not even think before speaking, as the words came out almost as a reflex.

"Oh," the blond said, clearly regretting asking his question, "was there an accident or something?"

"They were murdered. I'm sure you heard about it."

Naruto considered this for a second before it dawned on him, "Wait… you meanyou're one of _the _Uchiha?!"

"Yes, _the_ Uchiha," Sasuke replied coldly.

Naruto looked around nervously, feeling certain that he had touched an extremely sensitive issue. "I'm sorry, Sasuke. I didn't realize…"

"It's fine," the Uchiha said with a sigh.

_What did I just say?_

"Are you sure? 'Cause I thought–"

"There's no way you could've known, Naruto. It's not like I talk about it all the time or anything."

Naruto seemed relieved to hear this, but did not utter another word. Even though he had been forgiven, the blond apparently knew that Sasuke would want a few minutes to mull things over, given the heaviness of what was being discussed. Or, at least, that's what Sasuke thought as they walked in comfortable silence. It wasn't that Naruto was afraid to speak, but rather that he understood how his companion felt, and was responding accordingly.

_Never would've thought this dobe could be so observant…_

And so they walked for roughly five minutes, Naruto looking around distractedly while Sasuke tried to gain control of his emotions. It wasn't so much that he couldn't bear to think about what had happened to his parents, but more that he really didn't want to talk about it with anyone. That would involve opening up to people, which Sasuke didn't particularly want to do. Why should they have to know about his parents? They could read a newspaper if they wanted to know so badly and leave Sasuke out of the equation. Then they'd both be happy.

Usually people were a bit insistent on learning "Sasuke's side" of the story. What side was that? He wasn't the one who was murdered, so why the interest. It drove Sasuke crazy when people did that, which was why it was so refreshing that Naruto had decided to drop the subject entirely.

Of course, it was only a matter of time until Naruto was forced to speak again, but by that time Sasuke had regained his composure and was aware of his surroundings once more.

"Here we are!" the blond announced, motioning dramatically to a simple ramen stand wedged between to massive buildings.

Sasuke looked at the stand skeptically for a second, doubting that any place so cramped could possibly serve anything worthwhile. Since Naruto seemed so enthusiastic, though, it seemed that the least the Uchiha could do was to play along. "It's… cozy…"

"I know! Isn't it great!" the blond exclaimed, clearly not catching his companion's doubtful tone. "They have such great service, too! Oh, and the food! It's like… the ramen of the gods!"

_Ramen of the gods…_

Before Sasuke could utter another word, Naruto grabbed him by the wrist and dragged him up to the counter, where they both plopped down on adjacent stools. Sasuke surveyed the stand for a second, noting that there was only one other customer in the tiny establishment, who had apparently fallen asleep in his bowl of ramen. In spite of this troubling sight, though, the stand did have a certain atmosphere that the Uchiha found strangely charming.

"Ah! Naruto!" the man behind the counter exclaimed upon looking up, "And you've brought a friend today, I see."

"Hey, Gramps! This is Sasuke. He's treating me today."

"Is he now? I hope you know what you're getting yourself into, kid," the man replied with a hearty chuckle as he whipped out a pad of paper.

_Shit, I forgot about that. I hope I brought enough…_

"Now, what'll it be today, Naruto?"

"Hmm, let me think, Gramps," the blond mused, though he did not bother to glance down at the menu before him. "I think I'll have three bowls of the miso pork to start with."

_To start with?!_

"Light order today, huh? And how about you, son? What sounds good?" the man asked, scribbling away on his notepad.

"Umm… I'll have the miso pork, too…"

"All right, how many? Three bowls? Four?" the man asked, leaning into the Uchiha's face as he spoke.

"One's fine," Sasuke stammered, trying to ignore the bits of spittle that had flown in his face.

"One?" the man said in disbelief, as if such a miniscule amount was inconceivable, before finally shrugging his shoulders. "Suit yourself. Four miso pork coming up."

It was only a matter of minutes before the man returned with four steaming bowls of ramen, which he expertly laid before the two teens. "There you go. Have at it!"

Sasuke looked at his bowl of ramen suspiciously for a moment, trying to decide if it was even edible. It looked safe enough, and it smelled delicious, but for whatever reason the Uchiha's intuition told him that Naruto was not the most reliable source of information. Glancing to the side, however, Sasuke found that the aforementioned blond had already inhaled his first bowl of ramen, and was currently diving face-first into his second.

_Well… I guess it's not poisoned…_

Taking a deep breath and closing his eyes, Sasuke tentatively raised a few noodles from the bowl to his mouth, cringing slightly as he took a bite. Soon, however, he was overcome by sheer ecstasy, as the flavor of Ichiraku Ramen's specialty noodles began to sink in.

"My God, this is the best ramen I've ever had…" Sasuke started, staring at the bowl before him in utter disbelief.

"I told you," Naruto said, his mouth full of noodly-goodness. "Hey, Gramps, can I get a few more bowls?"

Sasuke didn't even care that Naruto was slowly running up the bill, but instead began to eat his own ramen with similar voracity. It was not long before his bowl was drained, as was Naruto's sixth, and the Uchiha took a moment to study his companion.

It was strange, but the blond had proven Sasuke wrong yet again that night. He actually did know what he was talking about; at least when it came to ramen, that is. Of course, how could he really doubt Naruto, when he so greedily downed bowl after bowl of the stuff?

Then again, Sasuke had already learned that the ethusiastic boy was a pro at hiding his true emotions. What if his ridiculous love of ramen was just an act to cover up his inner turmoil? It was absurd to think that Naruto would calculate his movements so precisely, but Sasuke felt that anything was possible at this point.

_How can someone who seems so incredible stupid be so… interesting? It's like… it's like…_

It was then that Sasuke pinpointed exactly what was bothering him about the blond. It came so suddenly that his jaw almost dropped open in surprise, and he was forced to momentarily conceal his face with a napkin as he thought.

_It's just like me. It's like he took my experiences and just turned my reaction on its head. Why didn't I see it before?_

Shortly after this thought crossed his mind, Sasuke realized that Naruto was staring at him once again, and he snapped out of his reverie. Had he been zoning out again?

"Ah, are you full, then?" the Uchiha asked, nodding at the pile of empty bowls.

Naruto scrutinized the bowls for a second before responding, "Yeah, I think that's enough. Don't wanna over do it. Gramps!"

"Oh, done already, are you? Let's see then," the man said, pulling out a calculator from his pocket. After crunching some numbers for a second, he looked up with a satisfied grin. "That'll be fifty-seven dollars."

_Fifty-seven dollars for ramen!? How much did he eat?_

Deciding that it would be best not to argue, Sasuke pulled out his wallet and laid his Visa on the counter. "Will that do?"

"Sure. Just give me a sec."

After briefly stepping into the back room, the man returned with Sasuke's card and wished the two teens a wonderful night. Naruto waved enthusiastically to the man, and together he and the Uchiha stepped outside Ichiraku Ramen into the cool, evening air.

"Thanks for dinner, Sasuke," Naruto said, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. "I know it was probably a bit more than you expected…"

"Don't worry about it," the Uchiha interrupted as he placed the credit card back into his wallet. "Just as long as we're even."

"Okay… 'cause I could cover part of it if you want…

"It's fine, Naruto. Now, I think I know the way back from here, so I think I'll just say goodbye now."

"Oh, all right. I'll see you later," Naruto said as he turned to make his leave.

"Later," Sasuke replied, starting off in the opposite direction.

Sasuke struggled with his thoughts on the way home, trying to come to terms with his revelation over dinner. He suddenly found Naruto to be so intriguing, a feeling that he had not had about a person for quite some time, and it was frightening. Sasuke knew what happened when he found someone interesting like that. Unless he did something, it would only be a matter of time until Naruto forced his way into the Uchiha's life, and that was something that Sasuke wanted to avoid if at all possible.

By the time Sasuke had reached this conclusion, he had already returned to his home and was lying comfortably in his bed. He stared up at the ceiling, repeating it over and over in his head, like a mantra, lest he forget it in his sleep.

_I must avoid Naruto… I must avoid Naruto…_

In spite of himself, however, Sasuke ultimately fell asleep with the slightest trace of a smile, a faint murmur escaping his lips.

_That dobe…_

_---_

And there you have it. Four chapters down, and we actually got some NaruSasu goodness in this one. How will their relationship develop from this point on? You'll just have to read to find out. Until next time!


	5. Friendship Causes Pain

5. Friendship Causes Pain

Naruto Uzumaki arrived at Konoha High the next day with a single goal in mind: talk to Sasuke. He felt that their get-together at Ichiraku Ramen had gone quite well; far better than the blond could ever have hoped, anyway. He could not figure out what exactly had happened, but he knew that he and the Uchiha had formed some sort of connection. They had even talked about Sasuke's parents, if only for a second, without having the conversation break down into a nasty argument. It was almost as if he and Sasuke understood one another, even though their interactions over the years were limited to a few chance encounters.

_I have to find him… to talk to him. It's a longshot, but maybe we can actually be friends…_

Of course, Naruto had a great deal of doubt lingering in the back of his mind. As well as their excursion had gone, he could not be certain if Sasuke was simply humoring the blond. Sasuke had wanted to apologize, after all; what if he was ignoring his true feelings just so the two of them would be square?

_No… no, if Sasuke really felt that way, he wouldn't have apologized to begin with. He felt guilty… that's got to mean something, right?_

It was enough evidence for Naruto to deem his search worthwhile, and thus the blond kept an eye out for Sasuke for much of the day. Not that he was difficult to find; Naruto only had to follow the banshee calls of the Uchiha's fanclub to find his target. Getting a chance to speak to Sasuke was another story, however, as there was never a moment when he was not swarmed by the popularity leeches of Konoha High.

Thus, when lunchtime came around, Naruto knew that he would have to act fast if he was going to beat the fangirls to the Uchiha. Unfortunately, as he weaved through the crowds of the cafeteria, Naruto found that his target was nowhere to be seen. He noticed that Sakura and Ino were having a similar problem as they wandered the lunchroom aimlessly in search for their beloved. It was quite puzzling, but the blond was by no means about to give up his quest.

_Hm… maybe Shikamaru knows where he is. They usually hang out, right?_

Naruto did not even bother to scan the cafeteria for the aforementioned lazy genius, for he knew from past experience that the Nara would only come inside once it became too "troublesome" to go cloud gazing. Thus, the vulpine boy slipped outside and started for the hills near the tennis courts, which he remembered as being one of Shikamaru's favorite spots. As he drew closer to the hill, though, Naruto recognized the voice of a familiar, raven-haired boy, which caused him to freeze in his tracks.

"I took him to some ramen shop."

"You treated Naruto to ramen? What are you, a masochist?"

_Hey, I don't eat that much…_

"Maybe, but it was actually pretty good."

"Ah, you two hit it off, then?"

"I meant the food."

"Touchy, touchy… but really, how did it go between the two of you?"

_Moment of truth…_

"I don't know… it was all right, I guess…"

Naruto's heart sunk a little at this conclusion. He could have sworn it was more than just "all right."

"What does that mean, exactly?"

"Well, I mean, I guess he's a good enough guy. He asked me about my parents…"

"And how did that go over?"

"It was fine. I told them they were murdered, and he didn't ask about them again. He… surprised me, actually."

"You can't judge a book by its cover, Sasuke. Naruto's a pretty complicated guy, once you get to know him."

_Complicated? Is that a good thing?_

"Yeah, and I don't want to get to know him."

_What did he say?_

"Come on, Sasuke. You wouldn't have brought this up today if Naruto hadn't affected you somehow…"

"You know, you said that same thing yesterday, and I'm sick of it."

"Why, because it's true?"

"No, because you're trying to force these friendships on me, when you know damn well how I feel about them. You're just as bad as Kakashi."

"You can't just force everyone out of your life, Sasuke."

"Watch me! Just keep that blond bastard out of my sight, okay!"

Naruto could hear the duo continuing in this manner for a while as he started walking in the opposite direction, but he no longer cared to listen to their words. It was too much for the blond to handle, this sudden revelation, and thus he took off running for his apartment, feeling like an idiot for thinking that Sasuke might actually be his friend.

xxxxx

Kiba spent the rest of his school day in a mild panic. He knew he was probably just being paranoid, but the fact was he hadn't seen Naruto since lunchtime, and the dog-boy was a bit worried about his friend. Sure, it was possible that Naruto was just playing hooky – he did have a tendency to do that from time to time – but Kiba somehow felt that this wasn't the case. After all, they usually skipped class together, and even if the blond had run off on his own, wouldn't he have stopped to tell his best friend? No, something was up, and Kiba knew he would not be able to concentrate until he found out what.

"Ms. Yuhi, may I be excused?" the Inuzuka asked, cutting his teacher off mid-sentence.

"What is it this time, Kiba?" Kurenai asked, giving the boy a skeptical glance as she set down her chalk. "Forget to feed Akamaru _again_?"

_Damn, she caught on to that one…_

"No, umm… I had Mexican for lunch, and –"

"Fine, go ahead," the brunette sighed as she turned to face the blackboard. "Interrupt my class like this again, though, and it's detention, got it?"

"Thank you, Ms. Yuhi," Kiba said, as he gathered his things and rushed out the door.

_That went better than expected. I'll have to remember to write that one down…_

With this obstacle out of the way, Kiba had only to run back home, which was only a few minutes away if he hurried. As he darted through the outskirts of Konoha, he tried to ignore the sinking feeling in his gut, hoping that logic might satisfy his concerns. Naruto probably went home sick. That was possible, right? Then again, Naruto never really got sick; the kid had an insane immune system, and stamina to boot.

_Something's up… it's the only explanation. What could it be, though? He was so happy last night…_

It was not long after this thought crossed his mind that Kiba arrived at his apartment complex, where he quickly rushed up the stairs to the third floor. He had made excellent time, taking every shortcut he could think of. It didn't hurt that most people were still either at school or work, leaving the streets wide open for excessive jaywalking. Thus, with his breathing heavy and sweat running down his face, the dog-boy arrived outside his apartment, where he found a familiar blond sitting on the floor, staring helplessly at the ground.

"Naruto? What's wrong?" Kiba asked, rushing to his roommate's side.

Naruto glanced at his friend, an embarrassed grin upon his face. "I forgot my key."

Kiba laughed and fumbled in his pocket for his set of keys. "Don't scare me like that, you jerk. I thought you were hurt or something…"

"Oh, sorry," Naruto replied, his voice somewhat distant. "What are you doing back so soon?"

_Okay, something's definitely wrong, here. Better play it cool for now, though…_

"I cut class," Kiba replied, flashing a cocky smile, "I got worried when I didn't see you after lunch."

"I see," the blond said, averting his eyes to the ground once more.

Kiba scrutinized his friend for a second as he threw open the door, trying to imagine just what was going through the vulpine boy's mind. "Well, are you coming?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah," Naruto mumbled, shaking his head briefly as he rose off the ground.

With that, the duo stepped into the apartment, kicking off their shoes by the door before taking a seat on the couch. Kiba rested his head on his hand, giving the blond a sidelong glance as he tried to figure out what exactly to say. Naruto, meanwhile, curled his legs up underneath him, staring vacantly at the blank TV, apparently awaiting the inevitable interrogation from his roommate.

_No sense in keeping him waiting, then…_

"Naruto… you mind telling me what's going on?"

"I don't know," Naruto replied with a heavy sigh, as a concerned Akamaru hopped into his lap. "It's nothing, I guess…"

"Do you really think I'm gonna buy that?" Kiba asked, giving the blond a skeptical glance. "Look, something happened, and I want to know what it is. Does it have anything to do with that Uchiha bastard? 'Cause if he –"

"It has nothing to do with Sasuke," Naruto snapped before realizing his sudden outburst. "I'm sorry… I mean it's not his fault, is all."

"But it's about him, isn't it?"

Naruto's hesitation was all the evidence Kiba needed to confirm his suspicions. "What did he do? Tell me."

"Well, I heard him talking with Shikamaru at lunch today. I guess they were discussing our dinner at Ichiraku Ramen last night, and Sasuke said… well, he said that he didn't want to get to know me. He doesn't want me to intrude on his life, I guess…"

_Hmm…_

"Is that all he said?" Kiba asked, feeling that some piece was missing to this puzzle. "Nothing about Kyuubi or anything?"

"No," Naruto replied, stroking Akamaru's fur with an almost robotic monotony. "That's just it, he didn't say anything personal… he just doesn't want anything to do with me. Like I said, it's not his fault, he just wants to be left alone…"

"And yet you're _taking_ it personally," the dog-boy concluded with a pensive nod.

"Yes!" the blond exclaimed with an exasperated sigh, "I don't know what the hell's wrong with me, Kiba. I guess I just need to shut up and move on…"

_He doesn't get it himself? I never even thought of that. Could it be…?_

"Naruto, I don't think you should give up just yet," the dog-boy said quite suddenly, placing a hand on his friend's shoulder.

"What do you mean? He doesn't want anything to do with me, so why should I force him?"

"Because this is clearly important to you, and I don't think you should ignore that fact just 'cause that asshole has issues."

"You're sure?" Naruto asked after a moment, removing his eyes from the dog in his lap to glance at his friend.

"Yeah, I'm sure," Kiba replied, rising from his seat. "But before you try talking to Sasuke again, I want you to figure out just why this matters so much to you."

Naruto gave a quick nod in response, but the look in his eyes betrayed his true feelings: he was scared. Kiba had apparently hit the nail on the head by pointing out Naruto's confusion, a fact that made the Inuzuka quite satisfied as he disappeared into the kitchen.

_That might've been a little harsh, but he knows I'm right. He doesn't know why the hell Sasuke matters to him… I wish I did. I have a guess, but I'll just have to wait to see if I'm right._

By the time he returned to the living room, Naruto had already turned on the TV, apparently deciding to set his worries aside, if only for the moment. Kiba was perfectly fine with this, feeling that it was best to let the blond deal with these problems at his own pace, and thus contented himself to sit beside his friend and pretend that everything was all right.

_He'll figure it out eventually, I'm sure…_


	6. I Am a Rock, I Am an Island

Okay, here's the sixth chapter of For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him. This one's a little bit longer, to make up for that last, shorter chapter. I'm sorry it's a little late, too. Anyway, thank you to all of those who reviewed, and now on with the chapter!

* * *

6. I Am a Rock, I Am an Island

Sasuke Uchiha awoke the next morning filled with an undying hatred for the world. He had only caught a few hours of sleep that night, the rest of it devoted to constant tossing and turning; at least, that's what Sasuke assumed from the navy sheets and pillows that were strewn across the floor. It also didn't help that the first sound he heard that day was that of "Sunshine, Lollipops, and Rainbows" blaring right next to his ear. Of course, this sound was quickly silenced, as Sasuke yanked his alarm clock from the wall and tossed it against the wall was all his groggy might.

_Fucking radio…_

With that pleasant thought, Sasuke rolled out of bed and wandered across the hallway to the bathroom, where he took a quick glance at his reflection in the mirror. To put it lightly, he was not pleased with what he saw: heavy bags under his eyes, jet-black hair that stood up rather awkwardly on one side, and his bare chest covered with the impressions of his tangled sheets. Truly, he was a mess, and the Uchiha could only hope that a shower would help somewhat in restoring his image.

Thus, with a disgruntled sigh, Sasuke dropped his dark, blue boxers to the ground and hopped into the shower, where he let the hot water rush over his body. For a minute he simply stood there beneath the showerhead and watched as the water ran in little streams off his hair, his mind swimming with thoughts. He knew perfectly well why he had not been able to sleep the night before, and it was something that he could not simply ignore.

_Naruto Uzumaki… I avoided you yesterday. I didn't talk to you. I didn't even _see_ you… so why the hell can't I stop thinking about you. Is there something wrong with me? I've lived for sixteen years not knowing the slightest bit about him, so why, all of a sudden, do I need to know everything about him? What is so damn interesting!_

Sasuke found the whole ordeal to be quite frustrating, but knew that he couldn't dwell on the matter forever and reached for the soap. As he lathered up, the Uchiha's mind continued to drift in spite of himself back to the subject of the blond. Every few moments the angsty teen shook the thoughts from his mind, but he found the attempts to be futile.

After all, Sasuke was not used to having someone bother him like this. It was almost an obsession, really, this need to understand just who Naruto was. How much of the blond's personality was just a carefully calculated act, a façade that he put on for the rest of the world? He knew there was something more to the blond, some deeply sensitive side of which he had only scratched the surface.

Of course, even if Sasuke acknowledged his interest in Naruto, the question remained why he had such a strong curiosity to begin with. Did he really feel such a strong connection with him just because of their tortured pasts? It was possible, Sasuke knew, but somehow it didn't seem sufficient. Whatever the case, though, the Uchiha knew he would simply have to avoid Naruto at all costs. Out of sight, out of mind, as the saying goes.

Thus, as he washed the foaming shampoo out of his raven-hair, Sasuke felt a renewed determination to keep the blond out of his life. Hopefully, with a bit of effort, he would be able to move past this little obstacle and return to his simple existence. Shutting the water off, Sasuke then stepped out of the shower and wrapped a towel around his waist before starting for his bedroom. With drops of water forming a small, dark spot on his sapphire carpet, the Uchiha quickly dried off and walked over to his dresser, where he dug around for something that screamed, "stay the hell away."

_Alright… black ought to do. All black. No… that's a bit extreme. Just nothing orange…_

Ultimately, Sasuke threw on a simple black tee and stepped into some blue jeans; hopefully he could blend in with such an unassuming ensemble. Feeling adequately prepared for the day, the raven-haired boy made his way downstairs to the kitchen, where he poured himself a bowl Cheerios. He munched on these for a while at the table and, still feeling somewhat groggy, did not immediately notice his brother staring at him with a satisfied smirk.

"So, Sasuke, are you going to see your boyfriend again today?" Itachi asked, his eyes narrowing with sadistic pleasure.

"What?" the young Uchiha asked, looking up from his cereal. "What are you talking about?"

"You know, that blond who stopped by the other day. He is your boyfriend, isn't he?"

"No," Sasuke snapped, stuffing a spoonful of cereal into his mouth. "Now shut up."

"Oh, a little touchy this morning, aren't we?" Itachi continued, his smile seemingly glued to his face. "I just assumed that you went to visit him the other night when you came home so late."

"Well, you were wrong, all right?"

"Hm, maybe… but that was who you were with, wasn't it?" the elder Uchiha said, titling his head to the side.

Sasuke sighed, knowing that his brother would not get off his case unless he gave a straight answer. "Yeah, I bought him dinner, but I was just apologizing to him. Now, can I finish my breakfast, or aren't you done being an asshole?"

"Ah, I get it now. You two aren't official yet. Be sure to keep me updated."

Sasuke did not bother to argue with Itachi, but instead turned his attention back to his Cheerios, scooping them into his mouth with an almost robotic monotony. He knew that Itachi was just trying to get a reaction out of his little brother, bringing up Naruto like that; after all, just a few days before Itachi had attributed Sasuke's nosebleed to a pretty girl. In spite of this, though, the young Uchiha could not help but feel a bit perturbed by his brother's words. It had never occurred to Sasuke that his feelings for Naruto might go beyond a simple friendly interest, and as much as he tried, he could not deny that the possibility existed.

Even though Sasuke had never had a romantic interest in his past, his raging, teenage hormones and the wonders of the internet had revealed long ago that he was, in fact, gay. He had accepted this about himself; not that it made much of a difference, since he never planned to get close enough to anyone for such things to matter. Of course, he didn't exactly announce it to the world, either. As far as Sasuke was concerned, they had no need to know, and telling them would only needlessly complicate things.

Shikamaru was probably the only one Sasuke could think of who might possibly know about his homosexuality, but even then it had never really been discussed. If the lazy genius knew at all, it was through his own intuition, and he never bothered to ask about it.

_Probably too "troublesome" a subject…_

The fact that Sasuke rarely thought about love, then, made Itachi's accusation all the more jarring for the young Uchiha. It was such a drastic jump from a simple friendship, which was bad enough, that Sasuke momentarily panicked.

_There's no way it can be true… I only just met him the other day. I can't be in love with him. No… it's just Itachi; no need to take him seriously. Just stick to the plan: avoid Naruto._

"Well, are you coming then, Sasuke?"

Hearing his brother's voice, Sasuke snapped out of his thoughts and realized that he had been sitting at the table, staring at his empty bowl for roughly five minutes. Itachi was waiting by the door, spinning the car keys on his finger impatiently.

"You did still want a ride to school, right?" Itachi asked, seemingly satisfied at his brother's spaciness.

Sasuke made no response, but instead slid out of his chair and grabbed his backpack before joining the elder Uchiha by the door. With a soft chuckle, Itachi started out the door, locking it behind him, and alongside his brother started for the sleek, silver Lamborghini parked in the driveway. With the press of a button, the doors were unlocked and Sasuke hopped into the backseat. He knew better than to call shotgun, since Itachi would have to pick up his coworker, Kisame Hoshigaki, on the way.

Thus, the Uchiha brothers drove on in silence, Sasuke resting his head against the window while Itachi focused on the road. Before long, they arrived at a somewhat smaller mansion, where an eerie, blue-skinned man stood waiting. They stopped for only a moment to pick up the passenger, who looked over his shoulder at Sasuke with a full smile.

"Hey, short-stuff," the new arrival said with a throaty laugh.

"Tsk–" came Sasuke's curt reply, not even bothering to avert his eyes from the window.

Indeed, Sasuke did not particularly care for Kisame. To be fair, his only experience with the man came from these five minute drives to school, but the young Uchiha felt that it was enough to make a proper assessment. From the blue skin to the gill-like marks on his face, Kisame was simply disturbing to look at, and from what Sasuke heard his personality was not much better. Ever abrasive, the shark-man was quick to pick a fight, which only grew worse when he was drunk. It was this last detail that resulted in this carpool to begin with, as Kisame had one too many DUIs under his belt.

What was even more mysterious about this passenger, however, was the fact that he was one of the co-owners of the greatest weapons manufacturing company in the world. Sasuke wouldn't have believed it himself if it weren't for the black business suit, bearing the distinct Akatsuki Corp. red cloud insignia on the lapel. Regardless, the young Uchiha found everything about Kisame to be a bit "fishy."

"Sasuke's in a particularly sour mood this morning, isn't he?" Kisame asked, glancing over at the elder Uchiha.

"He's just sexually frustrated about his new boyfriend. You know how those teenage hormones are."

"Is that so? Who's the lucky guy, Sasuke?"

"Fuck off," Sasuke muttered, shooting the fish-man an icy glare.

"I think you hit the nail on the head, Itachi," Kisame said with a broad grin.

"What can I say? I know how my little brother thinks."

Sasuke tried his best to ignore the duo, but he found that it was difficult when they were teaming up on him like this. Thus, when he saw Konoha High approaching on the right, he did not even wait for the car to come to a complete stop, but tumbled out with backpack in hand. Just before he could get out of earshot, though, he heard Itachi shout one final taunt.

"Say hi to your boy-toy for me!"

With that, the Lamborghini sped off into the distance, leaving Sasuke to storm off to class, narrowing his eyes in dangerous frustration. For a few seconds he was prepared to kill any living being that got in his way, running through his mind all of the ways he would like to deal with his beloved brother.

_Right in the throat… that's the spot. See how many smart-ass comments you can make then, Itachi…_

By the time he had reached his world history class with Kurenai Yuhi, though, Sasuke's burning rage had diminished, for shortly after taking his seat his attention shifted to a certain blond sitting across the room. Sasuke didn't dare to actually look in that direction, but he could feel Naruto's presence there, could feel his eyes boring a hole in the back of his head, and it was physically irritating. Every second he sat during that lecture, he felt this itching desire to turn towards the blond, just to see if he was actually watching him, or if it was all a figment of Sasuke's imagination.

The Uchiha was able to resist this urge, however, overwhelming his desires with sheer willpower, so that to anyone else he appeared to simply be bored with class. Sasuke was actually quite pleased with his act, as he was even able to answer a question about the Mongols when asked, all without breaking a sweat.

_Maybe forgetting about Naruto won't be so hard after all…_

As the day wore on, though, Sasuke realized that he was only kidding himself. He was fortunate that his next class, statistics with Asuma Sarutobi, was Naruto-free, and all he had to do was sprint to keep away from the blond in PE with Maito Gai. At lunch, though, things did not go so smoothly. Despite surrounding himself with his screeching fanclub, Sasuke found that he could still pick out Naruto's voice over the din. He tried to actually focus on Sakura and Ino's discussion, but his mind would drift back to the blond's animated discussion across the room. It was incredibly annoying, and it eventually got to the point where the Uchiha was forced to leave the room, throwing his half-eaten lunch into the trash.

"Dammit," Sasuke muttered, taking a seat on the floor beside his locker. "This wasn't supposed to be this hard…"

For a moment, Sasuke considered analyzing what he was feeling so that he might understand how to better tackle the situation. It wasn't a bad idea, really, but to prospect of what the raven-haired boy might discover scared him. Thus, Sasuke simply rose from the floor just as the school bell rang, giving him five minutes to reach his next class.

The next two classes were quite painful for the Uchiha, for even though Naruto was not present, Sasuke was anxious for his final obstacle: English with Kakashi. It was the last class of the day, and he knew that Naruto would be there, sitting right beside him, with Kakashi studying them all the while.

_There's no way to hide it from him… Kakashi will know that something's up with me and Naruto. He'll see it right away, and he won't just let it go either. Maybe I can just skip it…_

He knew it wasn't really an option, and as Ebisu lectured on about the inner workings of government, Sasuke tried to mentally prepare himself for what was bound to be the hardest part of his day. If he gave up now, he would be admitting that Naruto had a hold on him, and Sasuke had no intention of letting that happen. He could deal with Kakashi; it would be annoying, granted, but he could do it. It wouldn't be the first time the teacher tried to force a relationship down his throat, and it certainly wouldn't be the last. As long as he could make it through the next class without looking at the blond, he would be free.

With this determination, Sasuke left Ebisu's class and started down the hall, pausing for a moment outside of Kakashi's room. He took a deep, soothing breath, and then burst into the room, starting straight for his seat. There was a brief flash of yellow to his right, but he did not let his eyes rest upon it and instead stared intently at the blank blackboard.

_Naruto's here… this is it…_

Indeed, as this thought crossed his mind, Sasuke was startled as the classroom door swung open once again as a tall, silver-haired man entered the room. He had his face buried in what was clearly a hentai novel, a mask covering his mouth, and a scar running vertically through his left eye that gave him a certain enigmatic quality. Sasuke did not need to look up to know who this new arrival was, however, for a simple glance at his watch told him that the man was a good ten minutes late.

_It's Kakashi all right…_

Indeed, Mr. Hatake had arrived, and all conversation dwindled to a few murmurs as he clapped his book shut and shoved the dirty novel into his back pocket. He scanned the class briefly, a hint of a smile showing through his mask.

"Sorry I'm late, class. I got a little lost on the road of life."

The class groaned in unison, having heard Kakashi's infamous excuses several times in the past, and simply pulled out their notebooks as they prepared for their lecture. Satisfied with this, the eccentric teacher picked up his chalk and began to scribble notes on the board regarding various parts of speech. Sasuke was familiar with all of these, and did not even bother to take out his notes, but instead glared at the back of Kakashi's head.

_He hasn't noticed anything yet…_ _I can do this…_

Fifteen minutes went surprisingly quickly, as Sasuke was able to focus on his resentment of Kakashi and ignore the blond to his immediate right. Around this point, though, the teacher turned and faced the class, reading a passage from "Tintern Abbey," forcing Sasuke to hide his glower and the bitterness that went with it. At this point, he suddenly became painfully aware of a certain set of eyes fixed upon him. It was the moment he had been dreading, and Sasuke tried to focus on Kakashi's words, feigning interest as much as he possibly could.

"_That best portion of a good man's life, His little nameless…" dammit, Naruto. Turn around or something!_

Sasuke knew that Naruto wasn't actually _staring_ at him, per se; he also had to pay attention to Kakashi's lecture, after all. But he knew that, every few minutes, the blond's gaze would drift to the side, almost as if he was studying Sasuke intently. It was horribly distracting, and the Uchiha suddenly felt somewhat feverish, knowing that there was nothing he could do about it. He glanced at his watch, hoping that he only had to endure this torture for a few more minutes, but found that it was only 2:35. Sighing, Sasuke turned his head to the left and scratched the back of his head, still struggling to take Naruto off his mind.

_Why is he staring at me? Is he just trying to drive me crazy?_

This inner debate continued for a few minutes, with Sasuke catching glimpses of the blond in his peripheral vision. Each time, Naruto was casting him a sideways glance as he pretended to follow along with the poem.

Then it happened: Sasuke snapped. He could not take it any longer, and finally turned his head to the right, and locked eyes with Naruto. They stared at each other for a moment, both startled by the sudden act, when the vulpine boy's eyes widened in realization. Sasuke in no way liked this change, but was unable to consider its meaning for long, as Kakashi had apparently noticed the two teens' exchange.

"Naruto, Sasuke, can I have you two pay attention, please? You can go back to ogling each other later," Kakashi said, much to the amusement of the class.

Sasuke shot a nasty look at the teacher as he went back to reading, while Naruto blushed profusely in his seat. This altered complexion only added to the young Uchiha's worries, and as the final bell rang, he knew that he would need some help with this predicament. Shikamaru wouldn't do, but Sasuke did have one other confidant that he knew would be of service.

_I think it's time to talk to O…_

_---_

Well, there you have it. Be sure to review, and stay tuned for the next chapter.


	7. Hello Darkness, My Old Friend

7. Hello Darkness, My Old Friend

Sasuke left school that day as quickly as possible, stopping for only a moment at his locker to gather his books before rushing outside. He wanted to get away from Naruto as quickly as possible, knowing that he would not be able to handle any chance encounter with the blond.

_What was that earlier? That look in his eyes… what was he thinking? And the way he blushed like that… could it really be?_

Sasuke tried to shake these thoughts from his head; it was too dangerous to even consider that possibility. Indeed, by acknowledging the potential depth of Naruto's emotions, the Uchiha knew that he would be setting himself up for failure. He had to convince himself that this was all just his imagination playing tricks on him, that Naruto was just some annoying kid that he stop thinking about.

It was for this reason that Sasuke wandered over to the Konoha City Park, an expansive, verdant area littered with trees and picturesque hills. He arrived there by no mere accident, for he knew if he were to find O anywhere, it would be beneath one of the park's many trees with his lackeys. Sasuke was somewhat apprehensive about seeking him out, but he knew that he couldn't possibly talk this problem over with Shikamaru or Kakashi. No, they would both read into it, jump to conclusions, and ultimately make things worse for the Uchiha. With O, there was a chance for Sasuke to get the information he desired and escape this whole situation without another relationship to weigh him down.

Unfortunately, this all meant that Sasuke would have to share some personal information with a man he did not fully understand. He felt he could trust O, and had talked things over with him in the past, but the raven-haired boy was not sure how the man would respond to the problem with Naruto. It was a dilemma, for in order to seek O's aid in this matter, Sasuke would have to give up some of his control on the situation, which he was rather reluctant to do.

Thus, for a few minutes, Sasuke simply stood at the top of one of the park's hills, staring down at his confidant sitting beneath a nearby oak. O had not seen the Uchiha, yet, his attention apparently centered on tuning the guitar in his hands, which gave Sasuke some time to think things through.

_It's not too late to turn back… I mean, what if he only confirms my fears? What would I do then? No! I have to face this thing head on. If I just ignore it, then it'll only be a matter of time before Naruto becomes a part of my life…_

With a calming breath, Sasuke stepped towards his friend, who glanced up from his guitar with a sly smirk, his eerie, yellow eyes shining even in the shade of the tree. Beside him, a silver-haired teen adjusted his glasses and set down his own guitar to watch the Uchiha's approach.

"Ah, why if it isn't Sasuke," O said, running a hand through his long, black hair. "What brings you here, today?"

"I was hoping to talk to you, O," Sasuke replied, before glancing briefly at the bespectacled companion. "Alone."

"Of course," the man replied, his eyes fixed on the young Uchiha. "Kabuto, give us a minute, will you?"

"As you wish, Orochimaru."

Kabuto gave a brief nod to both O and Sasuke before starting off for another tree, where a red-haired girl sat, expertly playing her flute. Once he felt that Kabuto was out of earshot, Sasuke then took a seat beside Orochimaru, trying to figure out exactly what he should say. Seeing that the raven-haired teen had no intention of speaking, Orochimaru began to strum a simple tune on his guitar to ease the tension. Sasuke appreciated this, for it made it clear that there was no pressure for him to speak until he was ready.

It always surprised Sasuke how insightful Orochimaru could actually be. Kakashi had never liked the man; called him a bad influence. Not that it wasn't true – Orochimaru was a high school drop-out, had no job besides his band "Sound Village," and was widely believed to be an avid drug user- but Sasuke felt at least some sort of connection with the man. Maybe it was Orochimaru's complete lack of direction in life that made Sasuke found so admirable, in that it contrasted so wonderfully with his role as heir to the Uchiha business.

Whatever the case, as Orochimaru played his tune Sasuke felt a strange wave of serenity rush over him, washing away his apprehension. Thus, in a few moments, he finally felt ready to speak his mind, and the serpentine man was more than willing to listen.

"So, O… I have a problem."

"I thought as much," Orochimaru said, laying his guitar down on the grass. "Tell me what's bothering you, Sasuke."

"Well, there's this guy at school…"

"I see," Orochimaru interrupted with a sly smile. "So what's the lucky kid's name?"

"It's not like that!" Sasuke sighed, closing his eyes in frustration. "He just ran into me the other day and I haven't been able to get him off my mind since."

"And is this a problem?"

"Yes! You know how I feel about getting close to people like that!"

"Oh, right," Orochimaru mused, rubbing his chin in thought. "I seem to remember hearing a similar thing after we first met…"

"Then you know where this is going. If I don't do something now, then this guy's going to sneak into my life like you did."

"Hmph, what is _that_ supposed to mean?" the musician pouted with a feigned sense of betrayal.

"You know I don't mean it that way," Sasuke replied, realizing his poor word choice. "I don't know what I'd do without you, Shikamaru, and Kakashi… but that's what scares me. I've already lost everyone important to me once…"

"I'm just kidding you, Sasuke," Orochimaru interrupted, placing a hand gently on the Uchiha's shoulder. "You need to stop being so serious all the time."

"You're right… maybe I'm just over-thinking this whole thing," Sasuke said, shaking his head in confusion. "But still… I don't want to take that chance."

"Well, then, if this kid is bothering you that much, you can always just get rid of him."

"What do you mean, 'get rid of him?'"

"Oh, you know, blackmail, threats of bodily harm,_ actual_ bodily harm…"

"No!" Sasuke interrupted, much to Orochimaru's amusement. "Look, I don't care if you _are_ kidding. I don't want to just get rid of Naruto–"

"Naruto, eh? It's nice to have a name for this mystery man," Orochimaru said with a satisfied smirk.

_Shit… I didn't mean to let that out… He's probably analyzing that slipup, too…_

"So, let me get this straight: you want to get this 'Naruto' out of your life, but you don't want to get rid of him all together. Is that right?" the serpentine man asked, gesticulating in the air as he spoke. "I must say, Sasuke, it doesn't sound like you quite know what you want to do yourself."

"No, it's not that," Sasuke replied, feeling quite foolish for revealing unnecessary information. "Look, I don't want to get close to Naruto, but I don't want to hurt him either. Do you know what I mean?"

"You're concerned about this kid's feelings, Sasuke? Since when are you so soft?"

"I'm not soft," the young Uchiha responded defensively, shooting his friend a quick glare. "I could get rid of him tomorrow if I wanted to."

"But you don't?"

"As a matter of fact, I don't. Naruto's been through a lot, and I don't want to make him suffer any more, all right?"

"I don't understand, Sasuke," Orochimaru began, a slight frown crossing his pale face. "If you want to get rid of him so badly, why does it matter what Naruto's been through? You treat most people like obstacles, why should this kid be any different?"

"Because… because Naruto's just special, okay?"

Sasuke froze immediately as these words left his mouth, a slight shiver running down his spine as he saw Orochimaru's lips curl into a familiar smirk. Clearly, the serpentine man had gotten just the information he wanted out of the young Uchiha, for he now stood up and stretched, guitar in hand.

"Well in that case, Sasuke, I'm afraid I can't help you."

"What? Why the hell not?" Sasuke exclaimed, rising to follow after his friend.

"I think you know why, Sasuke," Orochimaru replied enigmatically before reuniting with Kabuto, leaving a stunned Uchiha in his wake.

Indeed, for a moment, all Sasuke could do was stare off into space, shocked by how the conversation had gone. Soon, a cool breeze blew through his hair, and he suddenly realized what Orochimaru meant.

_Am I… am I in love with Naruto?_

xxxxx

Naruto Uzumaki burst into his apartment that afternoon, his face covered in sweat after having run all the way from school. Kiba had to stay after for track practice, meaning that the blond only had to share the apartment with Akamaru for a couple of hours. This was perfect, for Naruto really needed some time to himself, and he intended to seize this opportunity

As he kicked off his shoes at the door, Naruto heard a distinct yipping at his ankles, but he chose to ignore it for the moment; Akamaru could wait a while to be showered with attention. Thus, the anxious boy continued on his way to the bathroom, where he stripped out of his sweaty clothes, struggling somewhat from nerves. After a few moments, though, he stepped into the shower, pulling the curtain closed as he turned on the water.

Naruto stood there for quite some time, staring absently at the bathroom tile as the hot water rushed over him. He had taken Kiba's advice that day and studied Sasuke closely, trying to figure out just why he cared about the Uchiha. It had taken him some time to realize it, but when the two of them locked eyes during Kakashi's class, it hit him: he was in love with Sasuke.

_No… it can't be that. I just care about him, that's all!_

Naruto ran a handful of water through his face, his breathing accelerating with his rushing thoughts.

_Yeah, I can't be gay. What about that crush I had on Sakura? I didn't just make that up! No, I just feel like I understand Sasuke… because of his parents and everything._

Naruto knew, however, that he was only fooling himself. Yes, he had felt something for Sakura a few years before, but this was something far more intense. When he had thought about Sakura, all that came to mind were her eyes, her hair – superficial things. With Sasuke, though, Naruto saw the pain behind his onyx eyes, understood his strange relationship with Shikamaru, and wanted to have a similar connection.

_Dammit… what the hell am I gonna do? I can't possibly tell him how I feel… he'd hate me! If he doesn't all ready, that is…_ _Then again, am I really sure about this? Okay, Sasuke's hot – this is an undeniable fact – but does that really make me gay? I mean, I've only known the guy for a few days!_

It was all a bit much for Naruto to take in, and as he shut off the water in frustration, he realized he wouldn't be able to do this on his own. At the same time, though, this was not exactly a matter that Naruto felt comfortable discussing. He really didn't want to talk about his sexuality when he was not entirely sure about it himself, but he knew that he needed to talk this over with someone so that he could better understand his feelings for Sasuke. Of course, Naruto knew there was only one person he could confide in: Iruka.

Thus, after drying himself off quickly, Naruto wrapped a towel around his waist, picked up his dirty laundry, and started for his room, once again ignoring the attention-starved Akamaru that rushed to his feet. After sealing the door shut behind him, the blond dropped his sweaty clothes onto a pile in the corner, dropped his towel, and began scouring his drawers for some new duds. Soon, he was dressed in some orange shorts and a black T-shirt, at which point he slumped down on his bed, lying back on the blue sheets in exhaustion.

_Well, here goes nothing…_

Reaching over to his nightstand, Naruto picked up his phone and began dialing the familiar seven digits, gazing absently out the window to his side. Big, gray clouds were gathering outside, waiting to dump their contents out on the earth. Naruto didn't really think much of this, though, but instead anxiously listened to the phone ring on the other end. What if he wasn't there? What if he _was_ there? What was he going to say?

_I really should've thought this out better…_

"Hello?" came a genial voice on the other end, jarring Naruto out of his thoughts.

"D-dad? It's me, Naruto."

"Naruto! How are you? School going okay and everything?"

"Yes, yes, everything's fine," Naruto replied, trying to mask the anxiety in his voice. "I just have… a problem, I guess."

"A problem? What is it? Is everything all right? Are you –"

"Dad… I think I'm in love," Naruto interrupted with a sigh.

The blond could hear shuffling on the other end, and he knew it could only mean one thing: Iruka was getting comfortable. It was a relief, in a way, to know that his adoptive parent was taking this issue seriously. After a few seconds, the familiar voice returned with a calm, understanding tone.

"Naruto? You still there? I'm ready to hear all about it now."

"Well, there's someone at school…"

"Wait, it's not that Sakura girl, is it? I thought I told you she was just a pretty face…"

"No, it's not her. I learned my lesson," Naruto said, rubbing his cheek unconsciously where the girl had struck him, "It's someone else."

"Well, are you sure it's not just a crush?"

"That's just it… I'm not really sure," Naruto sighed, closing his eyes in frustration. "I've never felt this way about anyone else before…"

"Do you mean, like – gosh, how do I say this – physically?"

"Well, yeah… I guess," the blond began, a touch of red rising in his cheeks. "But it's more than that… oh, I can't explain it…"

"Naruto, I think I understand. This is clearly important to you, but have you tried talking to her yet?"

"Well… no, not really."

"And why not?"

"I dunno… I'm just don't want to be rejected again…"

"What kind of reason is that?" Iruka asked, taking on a stern tone. "Unless you tell her how you feel, how will you ever know if she feels the same way?"

"But… it's not that simple," Naruto replied, struggling to hide the real reason for his trepidation.

"Talk to her, Naruto. You'll thank me later."

"Dad, wait!" the vulpine boy began, only to be cut off by the hum of a dial tone.

For a moment, Naruto simply stared at the phone in his hand, overwhelmed with disappointment. It wasn't like he had expected a significant revelation, but he still hoped for some better advice than to just talk to Sasuke. He could've come up with that on his own. If only Iruka knew the whole story – that Naruto was in love with another guy – he might have given some greater insight. The blond was not quite ready to reveal that about himself, though, and for a similar reason, he knew that talking to Sasuke directly was out of the question.

"Dammit, Sasuke… why do you have to make things so hard?"

With a depressed sigh, Naruto rose from his bed and started out of the room, trying to figure out how he could possibly settle this problem. As he flung open the door, however, all thoughts were erased from his head as a familiar brunet tumbled into the room.

"Kiba?"

"Oh, h-hey, Naruto," Kiba said, glancing up at the blond with a sheepish smile. "Gai ended practice early, so I was gonna see if you wanted to grab some pizza…"

"How long have you been here?" Naruto asked, his voice dangerously low.

"What do you mean? I just got here…"

"What did you hear?" Naruto continued, grabbing his roommate by the shoulders.

"N-nothing," Kiba stammered, averting his eyes to the floor.

Naruto froze, recognizing the truth in the dog-boy's eyes said: he knew. "Don't fucking lie to me, Kiba! You heard everything, didn't you?"

"Naruto, just calm down," the Inuzuka replied, tentatively placing a hand on the blond's shoulder.

"Get the hell out of my way!"

As these words left his mouth, Naruto swung with newly clenched fist, striking Kiba in the jaw. The dog-boy fell stunned to the ground, giving the blond the perfect opportunity to make his escape. He rushed through the hallway, past a concerned Akamaru, with angry tears forming in his eyes.

_No… I'm not ready! Why the hell did Kiba have to find out…_

Naruto rushed out of the apartment into developing storm, the rain falling heavily outside the awning. Behind him, the blond could see Kiba stumbling out onto the wet cement, a trickle of blood running from the corner of his mouth. In his dazed state, though, the dog-boy had no chance of catching up, and soon Naruto vanished around the corner into the storm.


	8. If I Never Loved, I Never Would've Cried

Hey, faithful readers. I apologize upfront about this being so late. This chapter was difficult for me. I blame it on exam stress... anyway, here it is. Enjoy!

* * *

8. If I Never Loved, I Never Would Have Cried

Lying on his apartment's sofa, Shikamaru Nara stared up at the ceiling, a particularly strong wave of laziness rushing over him. He had crashed on the couch as soon as he got home from school, with the intent of watching some television and putting off his homework for as long as possible. Unfortunately, as soon as he made himself comfortable, the Nara had realized that the remote control was sitting on top of the TV across the room, a fact which he found quite "troublesome." Of course, he knew that it would require too much energy to get up and retrieve the distant remote, and so instead of watching whatever garbage basic cable had to offer at 4:00 in the afternoon, he decided to count the number of little pimples on the ceiling. This he had done several times, checking and rechecking his math for well over an hour as rain began to pour outside.

_Thirteen thousand two hundred and ninety-seven… that's a prime number…_

It was now too tedious to count them all again, and Shikamaru was struggling to find another activity to forestall his looming assignments. As if to answer his prayers, it was shortly after coming to this conclusion that the Nara heard a distinct rapping at his door. He ignored it the first time, feeling that it was still too inconvenient to get out of his nook on the sofa, but the knocking continued, this time accompanied by a rather weak cursing.

"Dammit, Shikamaru… I know you're there…"

Hearing this, Shikamaru knew that it was useless to ignore the knocking anymore and rolled off the couch, hitting the ground with a thud. He lay there for a moment, struggling to muster enough energy to actually pick himself off the floor, before the pounding resumed with a vengeance.

"All right, all right, I'm coming…" the lazy genius muttered as he stumbled towards the door. Upon throwing it open, he was genuinely surprised to find a certain blond standing in the pouring rain.

"Naruto?"

"H-hey, Shikamaru… can I come in?" Naruto asked with a forced smile.

"Yeah, sure… make yourself at home," the Nara replied, stepping to the side.

Naruto gratefully entered the apartment, his shoes squeaking on the vinyl entryway. As he removed his soaked footwear, the dripping from the blond's clothes formed a small puddle at his feet, until Shikamaru's own feet were damp.

"So, I take it you and Kiba had another fight?" Shikamaru asked, eyeing his friend curiously.

"Yeah, you could say that," Naruto admitted with a chuckle, "I just have to get away from him for a little bit."

"Well, you're free to stay if you want. I don't want you getting the apartment all wet though; just another thing to clean up," the Nara said, glancing down at the wet floor. "Why don't you take a shower and warm up, and I'll find you some dry clothes to wear, all right?"

"Oh, okay," the blond responded with a quick nod, before proceeding to strip on the spot.

_Whatever… it's not worth the energy to stop him…_

In a flash, Naruto was down to just his drenched boxers, at which point he gathered up his soaked articles. "So, where do you want these?"

"Just give 'em to me; you go hop in the shower before you catch a cold," Shikamaru stated, shaking his head in mild amusement as he took the blond's clothes.

As Naruto disappeared around the corner, the lazy genius looked down at the damp bundle in his hands, realizing for the first time that they were drenching his own clothes. Knowing that it was too late to change anything, however, Shikamaru simply sighed and started for the kitchen, where he dumped the blond's clothes into the sink.

_That'll do… now to get that troublesome idiot some clothes…_

With this thought, the Nara started for his room just down the hall past the bathroom, where the shower was now running. He searched through his drawers for a moment, taking out a few piles of unfolded laundry to sort through on the floor. After clearing some of the old magazines, tattered notebooks, and assorted chess pieces out of the way, Shikamaru began to go through his pile one article at a time, trying to find some older clothes that might possibly fit Naruto.

_Let's see… no, too big. This one's Choji's, I think… Where did this come from?_

It was a surprisingly long process to find all of the necessary clothing, with Shikamaru having to dig through pile after pile of laundry before coming up with a t-shirt, some shorts, a pair of socks, and some boxers that were about Naruto's size. This deed accomplished, the lazy genius quickly dumped the spare clothes outside the bathroom door and returned to his earlier spot on the couch with an exhausted sigh.

Naturally, the instant that Shikamaru sat down there came yet another knocking at his door, this one much more energetic than the last. Groaning, the Nara lifted himself onto his feet and threw open the door, just narrowly dodging Kiba Inuzuka's fist as it came to pound once more.

"Shikamaru! Have you seen Naruto?" Kiba asked, completely ignoring the fact that he had almost knocked his friend out.

"Naruto? No, why, what happened?" Shikamaru replied with feigned ignorance.

"Dammit, I thought for sure he'd be here," the dog-boy muttered, wiping some of the fresh blood from his lip. "We had a little fight earlier and he ran off… I'm afraid he'll do something drastic. Can you think of anywhere else he might've gone?"

"Hmm… I don't know, have you tried Lee's yet?" the Nara said after a moment, leaning against the doorframe.

"Oh! I haven't tried there yet. Will you give me a call if he turns up here?"

"Sure thing. Good luck, now."

With a quick nod Kiba darted off to the right, his bare feet splashing water everywhere as he ran. Shikamaru watched this for a moment curiously; what was it that made finding Naruto worth running barefoot through a storm? There was more to this story than either of them was letting on, and Shikamaru was determined to learn the whole story.

_I have to be careful… I can't let Naruto know that Kiba stopped by. As long as he thinks I'm in the dark, he can trust me. He probably won't tell me what exactly happened; in fact, I'm 99% sure he'll lie. But if there's one thing I've learned about people, it's that their lies can be far more reliable than the truth…_

It was with these thoughts rushing through his head that Shikamaru closed the door to his apartment and lay down on the couch. There was something about Kiba's quick appearance that he found quite unsettling; too many things didn't add up. Aside from the barefeet and the obvious panic in the Inuzuka's eyes, there was the question of why Naruto had fled the apartment, when it was quite obvious he had one the fight.

Thinking this over, Shikamaru sat cross-legged on the couch and touched the tips of his fingers together, so that they formed a downward-pointing oval. In this trademark concentrating position, the Nara raced through the given data repeatedly, trying to come up with a sound hypothesis.

_Let's see… what could they have fought about? Naruto was the one that left, so it had to be something that affected him personally… maybe Kiba said something to insult him? That would explain why he wanted to apologize so badly… but if that were the case, Kiba would've just told me what happened. No… he was beating around the bush. It must be something that he wanted to keep just between the two of them… something only the two of them know._

_Or maybe that's the problem; it's something Kiba _wasn't_ supposed to know. If he overheard Naruto talking – with Iruka, probably – about some family business… that must be it. Iruka called to tell Naruto something… maybe about Kyuubi or Naruto's parents… and Kiba overheard. It all adds up! Now if I can just get Naruto to expose his lie…_

Fortunately, Shikamaru did not have to wait long to put his plan into action, for a few moments later the shower shut off. In a flash, Naruto had dried himself off and emerged in the Nara's spare clothes, which just fit surprisingly well.

"Thanks for the everything, Shikamaru," the blond said as he took a seat on the couch.

"Don't mention it," Shikamaru replied, sliding over a bit to make room for his friend. "Now, would you mind telling me what happened, exactly?"

"What do you mean?"

"Come on, Naruto. I'm talking about your fight with Kiba. What's the story?"

"Oh, well…" Naruto began, scratching the back of his head in thought. "Akamaru got into my ramen again. I told him that he needed to look after his pet better, he said that I shouldn't keep my ramen in the bottom cupboard, and next thing I knew we were punching each other in the face."

"Really? It doesn't look like he did much damage to you," Shikamaru said, raising his eyebrow skeptically.

"Well, I don't like to brag, but it wasn't really a fair fight," Naruto said, punching at the air as he spoke. "He lunged at me, but I dodged him and got him right in the chin. Poor guy didn't stand a chance."

"Hm… so it sounds like you won the fight pretty easily, huh?"

"I guess you could say that. Maybe he'll remember that next time…"

"But, if you won, why did you leave the apartment?" Shikamaru asked, cutting the blond off mid-sentence.

Naruto stared at his friend blankly for a moment, as if he didn't understand what had been said. "Why did I leave?"

"Yeah, you know. If you beat Kiba that badly, why didn't you kick him out instead?"

"Oh, umm…" Naruto began, glancing down at the floor in thought. "I couldn't just kick Kiba and Akamaru out, you know? I mean, there was a storm and everything…"

_Got him._

"I see… yes, that all makes sense. Well, why don't you stay here for a minute then; watch some TV or something. I'm gonna go for a walk."

"A walk?" the blond asked, tilting his head to the side inquisitively.

"Yeah, I don't really like to smoke inside. The smell gets everywhere," Shikamaru explained, patting the cigarettes in his pocket.

"All right. See ya, then."

With a quick nod, Shikamaru started outside, pleased to find the storm had subsided at this point, with only a few scattered drops falling to the ground. Once he had shut the door behind him, the Nara dug into his pocket for his cigarettes and leaned against the wet, metal railing. He flicked the bottom of the box a few times until he could grab one of the sticks, at which point he stuck it in his mouth and lit it quickly with his Zippo. The paper now burning, Shikamaru took a deep drag and let out a cloud of smoke, staring vacantly out at the city through the haze.

_I knew it. Naruto's definitely trying to hide something from me. The way he hesitated like that… it was quick, but it's all the evidence I need. Now, I guess I should give Kiba a call…_

Reaching into his pocket again, the lazy genius pulled out a cell phone and quickly dialed Kiba's cell, watching the line of smoke rise from his cigarette as he waited. Soon, a panicked Inuzuka answered on the other end, his elevated voice causing Shikamaru to wince.

"Shikamaru? What is it? Did you find Naruto? I just left Lee's, and he hasn't seen him either…"

"Naruto's fine, Kiba. He's been at my place for an hour now," the Nara sighed, holding the phone a few inches away from his ear.

"What?! You knew that the whole time? What the hell?"

"Look, you should know what kind of state Naruto's in. I had to be sure you wouldn't make things any worse."

"Oh, so now you think you can trust me?" Kiba said, sounding particularly hurt.

"Don't be a pain, Kiba," Shikamaru sighed, taking another puff of his cigarette. "I was doing what I thought was best for Naruto. Now, can we meet back at your apartment? I want to hear your side of the story."

"I can't tell you that…"

_Damn, he's stubborn…_

"Kiba, I'm not going to let you see Naruto until you tell me exactly what's going on, here. He's my friend too, remember."

The dog-boy seemed to think this over for a moment, as evidenced by the extended silence on the other end of the line. Soon, however, the Inuzuka's voice returned with a hint of concession. "All right, fine. I'll be there in ten minutes."

"See you then."

Shikamaru snapped his cell shut and thrust it back into his pocket, flicking his stub of a cigarette off the railing to a puddle below. He usually didn't like to smoke; in fact, it was only in situations such as these that he felt the need to puff on a cigarette. At any other time the Nara despised the fumes and the way the smoke made his eyes watered, but with all these new developments to consider, he found it quite soothing. It allowed him to clear his head and relax, to focus on the problem at hand and find the perfect solution.

Now that he had called Kiba, though, it was pointless to worry about the situation any more. Any conclusion he could draw would be mere speculation; it was clear that the Inuzuka knew something, and once he revealed what that was all the pieces would come together. Thus, rather than dwell on this troublesome matter any further, Shikmaru started on his way to Kiba and Naruto's apartment on the floor below, resting his hands behind his head as he walked.

It did not take him long, of course, to actually reach his destination. Once there, however, he was forced to wait for a few minutes until Kiba arrived, and he thus leaned back on the wall with a sigh.

_This was supposed to be a nice, quiet night… just sitting at home, watching_ Simpsons_ reruns… what a pain in the ass…_

Moments later, a distinct, splashing sound could be heard approaching at a surprising rate, followed by the appearance of a particular brunet, who took a second to catch his breath at the top of the stairs.

"Hey… Shikamaru…" Kiba panted, resting his hands on his knees.

"Did you run all the way from Lee's?" the Nara asked, gazing skeptically at his friend.

The Inuzuka nodded slowly, his breathing gradually steadying. "Let's go inside..."

_Straight to the point, huh?_

After quickly unlocking the door, Kiba stepped into the apartment, with Shikamaru following close behind. In spite of his sopping wet clothing, the dog-boy did not wish to waste any time to change, but instead took a seat on the floor, indicating to his friend to join him. Shikamaru grudgingly obliged and, feeling comfortable, turned to Kiba with an interrogating stare.

"Okay, tell me: what happened between you and Naruto?"

"First I have to know that he's okay. You talked to him right? Is he… well, stable?" the Inuzuka asked, his pleading voice sounding utterly pathetic.

_This sounds worse than I thought…_

"He's fine, Kiba. Like I said, though, I'm not letting you see him until I know what exactly is going on here."

Kiba lay back on the carpet, putting a hand to his forehead as he struggled to come up with the right words. After a moment, though, he simply sighed and came out with the truth. "Naruto's gay."

Shikamaru froze, gazing blankly at he dog-boy as these words sank in. "Really? A-are you sure?"

"Well, gay or bi… or something! I didn't really get a chance to talk to him about it."

"What makes you so sure? Did he tell you or what?"

"Okay, here's what happened," Kiba said in his growing frustration. "When I came home from track practice, I was going to ask Naruto if he wanted to go get some pizza. I heard him talking in his room, though, so I decided to wait outside. I guess he was talking to Iruka, and they were talking about love. It sounded like Naruto wanted some advice."

"So what? That could mean anything," Shikmaru interrupted with a dismissive wave of his hand.

"_And_," the dog-boy continued, sounding somewhat irritated, "when he hung up, I distinctly heard the name 'Sasuke.'"

"Sasuke?! You're serious?"

"I'm sure of it. I had suspected that something was going on between those two, and now there's no doubt about it: Naruto's in love with Sasuke."

Shikamaru put a hand to his forehead and stared at the floor, trying to figure out how he could possibly have missed something this big. It all made sense, of course; from Sasuke's strange behavior the other day to the fact that Naruto's fear earlier that night, it could only mean one thing: they were in love, and neither one knew what to do about it.

_At least I was close…_

"Hmm… this complicates things," Shikamaru mumbled, shaking his head slightly. "I thought this was just something between the two of you, but this… this is big."

"I know! I want to talk to him, but I don't think he's ready yet," Kiba continued with renewed exasperation. "He knew that Sasuke was important to him, but I don't think he realized himself what that meant until today."

"Well, he's gonna have to open up about it soon, 'cause we're going back to my apartment," the Nara said with sudden resolve.

"What?! Now? But don't we need a plan or something?"

"I have a plan," Shikamaru replied calmly, leading the dog-boy outside. "We need to get Naruto to talk about Sasuke sooner or later, and it might as well be now."

"Is that really a good idea? I mean, should we really be pushing him like that?"

"Like I said, I have a plan."

Kiba seemed to accept this explanation and followed his friend in silence into the dank night. The truth was Shikamaru had no plan, but he didn't think this was a particularly pressing issue. Any plan he might have made would probably be useless in Naruto's unpredictable state. Still, it was crucial that they get the vulpine boy to discuss his emotional issues somehow, whether or not he was ready.

It wasn't so much that he didn't sympathize with the blond's fear – anyone would feel insecure after discovering his latent homosexuality – but this went beyond Naruto's feelings. Now that Sasuke was involved, Shikamaru couldn't afford to let Mr. Uzumaki deal with these issues himself. No, it was his job to intervene and find out just what was going on between his two friends, as troublesome as it might be.

Thus, when he entered his apartment to find Naruto sitting complacently on his couch, Shikamaru wasted no time, but led Kiba inside so that they could begin their intervention.

"Naruto, we need to talk," the lazy genius said, shutting the door behind him.

The blond looked up at the duo in surprise before turning deathly pale. "No… Kiba! You told him?!"

"I didn't have a choice, Naruto!" Kiba replied pleadingly. "I was afraid you were gonna do something drastic…"

"You bastard!" Naruto spat, rushing from the couch to the bathroom, where he immediately locked the door.

_He has to make things so difficult…_

"Well, was this all part of your master plan?" the dog-boy asked, giving his friend a skeptical glance.

Shikamaru chose to ignore the Inuzuka's comments and instead approached the bathroom, where he could hear the Naruto's muffled sobs through the door. He leaned against the wall, trying to find just the right words to console the pitiful blond.

"Naruto… we don't care, you know."

"W-what?"

"That you're gay… we don't care."

There was silence for a few moments, and Shikamaru felt a few drops of sweat form on his brow. Was that the wrong thing to say? Maybe Naruto wanted them to care, so that they could understand how big of a deal this was to him. Before he could doubt himself any further, though, the Nara heard the distressed teen's faint voice reply.

"Y-you don't?"

"Of course we don't," Shikamaru continued, relieved that Naruto was still at least somewhat stable. "We're your friends. We like you for who you are."

_Wow, that was cheesy… even if it's the truth…_

"Yeah," Kiba interjected, taking a seat beside the lazy genius. "If I suddenly hated you, do you think I'd be running all the way over to Lee's just to find you?"

It seemed for a minute that Naruto had not heard either of them, yet neither Kiba nor Shikamaru dared utter another word. Finally, the blond spoke, though his voice sounded quite skeptical.

"You thought I went to Lee's?"

"Well, Shikamaru said you weren't here, and he said that you might've gone there instead…"

"Shikamaru lied to you?"

"I knew that something was going on between the two of you, so I sent Kiba on a wild goose chase," the lazy genius explained. "I didn't think he'd actually run all the way over there in his bare feet though."

More silence followed this quick exchange, and it felt like the tension in the hallway could be cut with a knife. After what seemed like an eternity, however, the bathroom door clicked and creaked open, with Naruto standing with a smirk crossing his face.

"Only you would run across town barefoot to try and find me."

"Hey, that's what friends are for," Kiba replied, returning the smile.

Shikamaru slid to the side, making room for the blond to join their powwow in the hallway. "Have a seat, Naruto. We still have a lot to talk about."

"What do you mean?" the blond asked as he occupied the space between his friends.

"Look, I'm not stupid. I know something's been going on between you and Sasuke, and if what Kiba told me is true, it's something big. I just want to hear your side of the story."

Naruto sighed, burying his face in his hands. "I don't know… I mean, I thought we connected the other night, but maybe I was just imagining things…"

"Let me put it this way," Shikamaru interrupted, seeing that they weren't getting anywhere. "Are you in love with Sasuke?"

The blond considered this briefly before squeaking out a distinct, "Yes."

"Okay, that's a start," the Nara continued in relief. "Now, do you know why you feel that way?"

"What kind of question is that?" Kiba interrupted, "You can't just analyze something like that."

"No, it's fine, Kiba," Naruto replied calmly. "I don't really understand it… I mean, we've both had rough pasts, but I know that's not the reason."

"So it's not because of your connection with him?" Shikamaru asked, hoping to dig deeper into his friend's thoughts.

"No, I don't think so. I mean, I started feeling this way long before I knew about his parents and stuff…"

"Then it's a physical attraction?" the lazy genius continued, causing Naruto to blush noticeably.

"Well… yeah, I guess… but it's more than that…"

Shikamaru shook his head in frustration, watching as the blond struggled to collect his thoughts. Maybe this was impossible to figure out, when Naruto knew so little about his feelings himself. Just when he was about to give up, though, Kiba broke into the conversation with a question of his own.

"Wait, let's go back to what started this whole mess to begin with. You know, the time you ran into Sasuke. What made you go and apologize to him?"

"That's a good point," Shikamaru concurred. "That was the first time you really interacted with Sasuke. Maybe that'll answer some questions. So why did you do it?"

"Hmm… well, I guess I felt guilty, that's all," Naruto offered, closing his eyes in thought.

"But _why_ did you feel guilty?" the Nara asked, trying to pry deeper into his friend's subconscious.

"Geez… I don't know. I did hurt him, maybe it was just that?"

"Come on, Naruto; I've heard you guys talk about Sasuke before, and it's never been pretty. There has to be some reason that you felt like he was worthy of an apology."

"Well… I guess if I had to describe it, I recognized something in him that reminded him of me. Does that make any sense?"

"Go on. Tell us what you mean," Shikamaru encouraged, his eyes brightening with sudden anticipation.

"Okay, it's like this," Naruto explained, gesticulating at the air as he spoke. "Even though Sasuke's the most popular guy in school and all the girls want to get in his pants, he's still alone. He tries to cut himself off from the rest of the world… and I guess I know how it feels to be that lonely…"

Shikamaru stared blankly at the blond for a moment, utterly shocked his sudden insight. Naruto had only spoken with Sasuke a few times, and already he understood that much about the Uchiha? All of that, and he didn't even know about Sasuke's parents. It was truly impressive, and it more than satisfied the Nara's curiosity.

"Well, Naruto, you'll be glad to know that I endorse your love of Sasuke," Shikamaru said, rising to his feet. "Now we can start planning how to get him to return those feelings."

"Wait, you mean all of this was just a test for Naruto?" Kiba asked indignantly. "What the hell's the matter with you?"

"Calm down, I wasn't testing Naruto at all," the lazy genius explained with a sigh. "We had to get Naruto to open up about his feelings for Sasuke, and we did that. I just happened to fulfill a second goal along the way."

"What, and you couldn't bother to tell me about it?"

"You didn't need to know," Shikamaru explained simply, but he decided to elaborate upon seeing the Inuzuka's mounting rage. "Look, Kiba, it's nothing personal. I just needed to know why Naruto was in love with Sasuke. Now that I know, we can move on."

"But what did you learn? Am I missing something?" Naruto asked, standing up to join his friends.

"Naruto, it's quite simple, really. I needed to make sure that you weren't in love with Sasuke just because the two of you had similar pasts. That wouldn't have been the right thing for Sasuke, since he doesn't need to dwell on the past any more than he already does. No, you're in love with him because you see how lonely he truly is, and you want to do something about it. You have real, selfless devotion."

"Why's that so important, though? If I love him, shouldn't that be enough?" the blond continued, his growing unease showing.

"No, that's not enough," Shikamaru replied, turning to his friend with sudden intensity. "If you're going to love Sasuke, then you must be prepared to make some sacrifices, because he's going to try his hardest not to love you back. Ever since his parents died, he's been afraid of going through that kind of loss again. Even though me and Kakashi are always there for him, he almost resents us for that very reason. He knows how important we are to him, and now he must live with the fear of having those connections taken away from him. We're a burden to him, no matter how much we try to help him…"

Shikamaru froze at this point, realizing that tears were beginning to form in spite of himself. He quickly wiped them away, although he was certain the others had already noticed. "That's why it's so important that you love Sasuke for the right reasons, Naruto. I know for a fact that he feels the same way about you… I've never seen him so worked up over someone in all the years that I've known him. But he's going to resist you every step of the way, because he doesn't want to experience that kind of pain ever again."

Naruto hesistated, struggling to find the right words. "But… how will this ever work if he only wants to get rid of me?"

"I never said it would be easy, but like I said, he does love you, Naruto. It's just a matter of getting him to realize it," Shikamaru replied, but seeing that the blond remained unsure, he placed a hand on his shoulder and continued. "Look, if anyone can do it, it's you, Naruto."

This was sufficient for Naruto, who gave a quick determined nod. "Just leave it to me."

With that, Naruto and Kiba started out of the apartment to return to their own home, leaving Shikamaru alone to his thoughts. Just as the duo disappeared around the corner, however, a familiar, plump boy appeared in the doorway, glancing confusedly at the Nara within.

"What are Naruto and Kiba doing here?"

Shikamaru sighed and collapsed on the couch, "I'll tell you all about it later, Choji…"

---

Well, there you have it. I'll have the next chapter up as soon as possible, and remember to review!


	9. Fakin' It

Hey, guys. Bit of a shorter chapter this time. It's necessary to set up the next chapter, though, so I hope you'll enjoy it anyway. Thank you to all of you for reading, and I offer a special thanks to those of you who reviewed. Now, on with the chapter!

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9. Fakin' It

Kakashi Hatake stood in front of the class the next day, a trace of a smile evident behind his mask. He had been fifteen minutes late, as usual, but was now prepared to address the students with unusual pleasure.

"Well, class, today I'm going to give you your first project." There was a simultaneous groan from the class, which Kakashi quickly waved down. "Now, now; I know what you're thinking, but I think you'll like what I have planned. I'm going to split you into groups of two, and each group will meet over the next week to learn about each other. Then, you will all write your partner's life story from his perspective. Easy, right?"

Sasuke glared at Kakashi, knowing perfectly well what the man had planned. Of course, he still hadn't forgiven the teacher for his humiliation the previous day, and now that the Uchiha knew he was in love with Naruto, this resentment had only grown worse. It wasn't that Sasuke was overly concerned about his feelings for Naruto; it was more of a crush at this point, something that he could easily do away with. As long as he kept away from the blond, Sasuke could do away with these unnecessary emotions before he became dependent upon them, as he had in the past.

Then again, as he watched his teacher explain the project, the Uchiha had a sinking suspicion that avoiding Naruto would not be as easy as he thought. It would be just like Kakashi to set up this convoluted plan to force the two of them to be together, and Sasuke did not like the prospect one bit.

_Do your worst, Kakashi. I can handle your meddling… I _will_ forget about Naruto._

"Now, if the right side of the class – my right – will line up, I've have the names of all those on the right side in this hat. Do I really have to explain this any further?"

Sasuke quickly glanced towards Naruto, determining whether they would be considered on the same side of the room. As he suspected, however, they were in the middle of the class, putting them in different groups. Naruto seemed to realize this as well, and quickly turned his head away when he met the Uchiha's eyes.

_Great… I'm sure Kakashi's enjoying every minute of this…_

"Now, line up already," Kakashi said, pulling out his hentai novel as he spoke. "Stalling isn't going to make this project go away."

The class quickly complied, forming a neat, single file line in front of the old, leather cowboy hat, with each student pulling out a slip of paper and reading the name aloud to the class. While most were at least content with their fates, others were less than pleased. Sakura and Ino, for example, were immediately at each other's throats, causing quite a scene before Kakashi decided to intervene. Shikamaru simply sighed when he drew Shino Aburame's name, but none of this really mattered to Sasuke. Instead, he prayed that someone else would draw a certain blond's name, hoping that by waiting in the back of the line he might increase his odds.

When it finally came to his turn, however, Sasuke knew that he had no such luck. He had not yet heard the anticipated name, and the sole slip of paper in the hat told him that Kakashi hadn't made a mistake in his math. There was only one person left in the class for the Uchiha to be paired up with, and as he unfolded the slip of paper, his fears were confirmed.

"Naruto Uzumaki…"

Sasuke immediately took his seat and fixed his glare on Kakashi, not once bothering to look at Naruto. He could picture the blond's expression perfectly in his head, one both panic-stricken and excited while he struggling to he struggled to conceal these beneath a mask of indifference. Yes, there was no doubt that Naruto was secretly pleased with this state of affairs, but Sasuke was actually fine with this. It wasn't his fault after all; Mr. Uzumaki just got lucky, and why shouldn't he be happy?

No, it was Kakashi who Sasuke scowled at for the rest of class, knowing that, somehow, the teacher had set this whole thing up. Even though it had come down to chance, the Uchiha could not shake the feeling that Kakashi had been hoping for this particular outcome. As ridiculous as it sounded, Sasuke believed that the man could've manipulated fate if he put his mind to it, and the content smile on the teacher's face did nothing to alleviate this suspicion.

_That bastard… this is all just a game for him. He knows perfectly well how I feel about this, but does he care? No, that asshole…_

When class finally ended, Sasuke waited at his desk for the others to leave, so that he might have some alone time with his teacher. Kakashi seemed to have anticipated this, as he tucked his book into his back pocket the moment the bell rang, eyeing the Uchiha curiously.

"Ah, Sasuke, what seems to be the problem?"

"Don't give me that, you know damn well what I'm here for," Sasuke replied, leaning over his teacher's desk with a menacing glare.

"I see… so this is about the project, correct?" Kakashi said, resting his head on his hand. "I got the feeling you weren't to pleased about having Naruto as your partner."

"Really? What gave you that idea?" the Uchiha said with a scowl. "You set this whole thing up just so I'd be stuck with him. Why can't you leave me alone, Kakashi?"

"Now, Sasuke, I've asked you before to address me as Mr. Hatake at school…"

"Don't change the subject! I want you to give me a different partner _now_!"

Kakashi sighed, rising from his seat to erase some notes from the blackboard. "You know I can't do that, Sasuke. I'm sorry that you aren't pleased with your partner, but if I let you switch partners, I'd have to let everyone change, and then the entire point of this project would be lost. No sense in writing about someone you already know, right?"

_Damn him… he was prepared for this…_

"Fine, you may have won this battle, Kakashi, but it's useless. You can't force him on me."

Kakashi gave the Uchiha a look of feigned confusion, scratching his head as he spoke. "Yeah… sure, whatever you say. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to clean up around before I head home."

Sasuke decided not to press the issue any further, but instead stormed out of the room without another word. No sooner had raven-haired boy thrown open his locker just down the hall, though, than he was approached by a certain blond, wearing his typical, stupid grin.

"H-hey, Sasuke," Naruto began as the Uchiha slammed his locker shut. "So, I was just thinking about thing for Kakashi's class…"

"What's this? Naruto Uzumaki wants to get a head start on his project?" Sasuke said, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

"No, it's not that," the vulpine boy stammered, a bit of color rising to his cheeks. "I just thought I'd see what time worked for you… so we can get this thing over with."

_Hmm… he's trying _so_ hard to sound like he doesn't care about this project at all..._

"Well… let's see," Sasuke began, rubbing his chin in mock thought. "What are you doing right now?"

"Now? You mean, like, this minute? Uh, nothing I guess…"

"Great, then you wouldn't mind heading over to the park with me. We can at least cover some ground today."

With that, Sasuke slung his backpack over his shoulder and started for the exit, a bewildered Naruto following in his tracks. The Uchiha wasn't exactly sure if this was the best idea, since he had thought it up on the spot, but he had a feeling that he could make this work. After all, the sooner they got this project over with, the sooner Sasuke could forget about the blond and move on with his life.

Then again, there was always that chance that things could go horribly wrong. Sasuke hadn't exactly pinpointed Naruto's feelings for him yet, and this was quite worrisome. Friendship was one thing – he had dealt with plenty of people who wanted to bask in the light of the brilliant Uchiha – but Sasuke had a feeling this wasn't the case. He had seen the way Naruto blushed the previous day, the way he kept avoiding eye contact, even now, asking to start this project as soon as possible; it all led to one, obvious conclusion, but Sasuke quickly shook it from his head.

_No! It can't be… I'm just letting that bastard Kakashi get in my head. Naruto just feels like he has a connection with me because of our parents. I can handle this…_

As much as Sasuke tried to tell himself this, he knew deep down that it was far more complicated than that. It was easier to just ignore that nagging feeling in the back of his mind, though, so the Uchiha decided to focus on the task at hand. All he had to do was finish this project. It wasn't a big deal: he just had to ask a few questions about Naruto and write a paper. He'd show Kakashi yet.

They walked in silence for a while, Naruto trailing awkwardly behind his raven-haired companion as they wandered Konoha's streets. Cars whizzed by on the streets beside them, trying to beat rush hour traffic home, while up above the sun shined through some gray clouds. Soon, the park appeared just around the corner, and the duo began their search for an ideal spot. Soon, they decided on a bench just on the top of a hill, where they slumped down and pulled out their pens and papers.

"All right, let's get this over with," Sasuke said, turning to the blond with a sigh.

"Okay, I'll go first," Naruto replied, chewing on his pen in thought. "Oh, I know! What's your favorite color?"

_Is he serious? That's the most profound thing he could think of?_

"Blue," Sasuke replied, pausing a moment before asking a question of his own. "Where were you born?"

"Wait, aren't you going to ask about my favorite color?"

"I think I've figured that much out," Sasuke replied, indicating the blond's bright orange T-shirt. As he did so, the Uchiha noticed for the first time a plastic bag sitting on the ground, which he pointed to curiously. "What's that?"

"Oh, this?" Naruto asked, lifting the bag, "these are some clothes that I left at Shikamaru's last night. He brought them for me today."

_Last night? Wait a second… did Shikamaru tell him something? I wouldn't put it past him, the way things have been going lately…_

"I see. You never did answer my first question, you know."

"Oh, right! I was born over in Mizu. Still do, actually… at least during the summer," Naruto began, trailing off for a minute before realizing it was his turn. "Oh, what about you? Were you born in Konoha?"

"Yeah," Sasuke replied, only to find the blond staring at him expectantly. "What?"

"C'mon, is that all you have to say? Do you like Konoha? Have you always lived here? Give me something to work with!"

"Fine," the Uchiha sighed, leaning back in the bench. "I've lived in Konoha my entire life. My parents owned the Uchiha Corporation before it merged with Akatsuki shortly after their deaths. They traveled frequently, sometimes they'd take Itachi and I along, like a vacation, but this is the only place I'd really call home. That good enough for you?"

"Yeah, that's much better," Naruto said with a goofy grin. "Now it's your turn."

"Okay, let's see," Sasuke mused, tilting his head to the side. "How did you meet your roommate? I think he said his name was Kiba?"

"Oh, yeah, Kiba! We met back home in Mizu," Naruto explained casually. "He was the first real friend I made after my parents died… I can't imagine what it would be like here without him. Now, as for you…"

_What's with that smirk? What's he planning…_

"Have you ever been in love with someone?" the blond asked, leaning in playfully.

"What? No!" Sasuke snapped, backing up to the edge of the bench.

"Oh, come on, there's no need to be embarrassed. You can tell me," Naruto continued, pressing closer to the Uchiha.

"Dammit, Naruto! I told you 'no,' now back off!"

With that, Sasuke kicked the blond back and rose off the bench, brushing off his clothes in a huff. He tossed his papers into the backpack and turned to Naruto, suddenly feeling guilty at the sight of his partner's panicked expression.

_How much does he know? What did Shikamaru tell him yesterday…_

"Look, let's finish this some other day…"

The moment these words left Sasuke's lips, there was a loud clap of thunder and the sky tore open, pouring upon the duo in the park. The Uchiha stared up at the rain in irritation, letting it run down his face.

"Shit."

"Sasuke! We can go back to my place. It's only a block from here," Naruto offered as he hurriedly packed up his belongings.

As much as Sasuke wanted to limit his contact with the blond, he knew that there was no other option at this point.

"All right. You lead the way."

---

Well, there you have it. What will happen at Naruto's apartment? You'll just have to wait and see! And remember: review!


	10. Silent Raindrops Fell

Hello, dear readers. Yes, this chapter is late, I know... and it's not all that long, either. I was planning to combine this with the next chapter, but I decided to cut it in half instead. I also had essays and exams this week, so I had to put this on the back burner. But, here it is. So, thank you for your patience, and I thank all of you, especially those who reviewed. Now, on with the chapter!

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10. Silent Raindrops Fell

Naruto stood outside his apartment, fumbling for his keys as the rain poured down on him and his raven-haired partner. He was actually quite grateful for this sudden storm, since he knew their conversation hadn't been going so well. Why had he decided to ask Sasuke about love? He hadn't meant to be that blunt, but it just sort of came out. Luckily, it looked like Sasuke was willing to overlook that uncomfortable moment, and as he pushed the door open, Naruto felt ready to take another stab at this icebreaking.

"All right, come on in," the blond said, giving an elaborate bow as he ushered the Uchiha inside.

Sasuke made no response, but simply stepped in and kicked off his shoes, sloshing the new-formed puddles. No sooner had Naruto sealed the door shut, though, than he heard a distinct growling from behind, causing his blood to run cold.

"Shoo, you mutt," the Uchiha scowled, waving his hand dismissively at a rather angry Akamaru.

"Wait, Sasuke! Don't – "

Alas, Naruto's plea came too late, as the young dog leaped forward and clamped down on the raven-haired boy's hand until he drew blood. Sasuke shook his hand violently, gritting his teeth in pain while the blond tried pulling on Akamaru's dangling hind legs. It only took a few minutes to get the dog off of Sasuke, but it felt like an eternity to Naruto, who hurriedly put Akamaru back in Kiba's room.

_Dammit, Kiba. I thought I told him not to leave Akamaru out all the time…_

Upon returning to the entryway with some band-aids, Naruto quickly tried to assist the bleeding Uchiha, but was met with much resistance.

"I can do it myself," Sasuke snapped, snatching a few of the bandages from Naruto's hands. "Damn dog…"

"I'm so sorry," Naruto said, eyeing his partner's bleeding hand. "I'll make sure to yell at Kiba later about that."

"No, it's fine," the Uchiha said after a moment, having adequately covered his wounds. "Let's move on."

_Is he serious?_

"Umm… okay," Naruto replied, not knowing quite what to say until he saw Sasuke's drenched outfit. "Oh, let me grab you some dry clothes."

The raven-haired boy gave a quick nod, and together they started for Naruto's room just down the hall. The blond hesitated just outside his door, trying to remember if he had left a complete mess that morning, or if was at least somewhat presentable. Reflecting on it, he knew that he had left his bed a mess – he rarely made it, unless Iruka was coming to visit – and he was rather certain he had left his clothes from the previous day strewn about the floor, but it wasn't anything obscene. He could deal with this.

_Here we go…_

With a deep breath, Naruto pushed open his bedroom door and stepped inside, briefly surveying the area for anything he might want to hide quickly. Much to his delight, aside from a pair of boxers draped over the side of his bed, there was little to be embarrassed about, so he decided to act naturally. It was just his room, after all. What was there to be afraid of? Sure, he was taking the boy he secretly loved inside his room, but that wasn't important. They were just working on a project, nothing more.

"Well, this is it," the blond announced, scratching the back of his head. "Umm, I'll pick out some clothes for myself, and then you can find something that works for you, okay?"

"Fine," Sasuke replied, glancing nonchalantly about the room.

_Okay, he doesn't seem to care either. That's a good thing… right?_

Deciding not to press the issue any further, Naruto dug into his drawers and grabbed a fresh, black t-shirt and some khaki shorts, which he brought over to his bed. As the blond began to change, Sasuke took his place at the dresser and rummaged for something that might possibly fit. He was, after all, a few inches taller than Naruto, and wanted to find something at least remotely comfortable. Soon, he shut the drawers, a few articles in hand, and Naruto sighed with relief. At the very least things seemed to be turning around after the Akamaru incident.

The blond's calm feeling was quickly replaced by one of sudden tension, however, as Sasuke stripped off his shirt, his damp, bare skin glistening in the lamplight. Naruto could not help but stare as the Uchiha continued, unbuckling his shorts and dropping them to the floor in one swift motion, leaving him in his relatively dry, navy boxers. The blond tried to avert his eyes, knowing full well how obvious he was being, but his eyes remained transfixed on Sasuke's exposed form in spite of himself.

_Dammit, Naruto! Just… think of something else! Baseball…_

Unfortunately, Naruto was a bit too late in this response, as Sasuke had apparently noticed this unusual behavior as he bent over to pull up his shorts. "Something wrong, Naruto?"

"What? Oh, um… no, it's nothing," the vulpine boy replied with a forced laugh.

"You might want to get dressed then," Sasuke said flatly as he pulled up his borrowed, orange shorts.

Naruto glanced down at the Uchiha's suggestion and realized, much to his embarrassment, that he had been standing in nothing but his green plaid boxers. He turned a deep shade of crimson and, quickly dressed, trying to keep his composure despite the awkward situation.

_Come on, Naruto. Get it together! Does he know I was watching him? He didn't seem mad… maybe he'll ignore it._

Slipping his black t-shirt over his head, Naruto was pleased to see that Sasuke was fully dressed and was simply waiting for him to finish. Now that they were both in dry clothes, the blond looked to his partner with a friendly grin.

"Okay, so do you need to give your brother a call so he can pick you up?" he asked, nodding towards the raging storm outside.

"No, I'll just wait it out," Sasuke said a bit too quickly. "Let's just work on that project."

"Hmm… well, let me at least get you something to eat, then," Naruto said, leading the Uchiha to the kitchenette. "We don't have much, but I'm sure I can find something to warm us up."

Naruto began tearing through his cabinets, searching for anything remotely edible, which he laid out on the counter. The choices were slim, of course: ramen (naturally), chicken noodle soup, macaroni and cheese, and some spaghetti. He turned to Sasuke, feeling a little sheepish at his poor selection.

"So, what looks good to you?"

Sasuke glanced at the options, before turning towards the table, saying, "Soup's fine, I guess."

_Is he just sparing my feelings? He doesn't really seem all that interested… but if he's lying for my sake, that's something, right? Or maybe he just doesn't want to be thrown out in the rain…_

Naruto pondered this for a few moments while the soup cooked in the microwave, resisting his urge to glance over his shoulder at the Uchiha. Upon hearing the distinct chime of the appliance, he threw open the door and pulled out the soup, pouring it into two bowls before laying them out on the table. He took a seat across from Sasuke, eating a few spoonfuls of the steaming liquid and relishing the feel of it warming his throat. Opposite him, Naruto could see the raven-haired boy swirling the soup absentmindedly, eyeing the noodles as they spun in the current.

_I knew it. He doesn't want to be here at all… well, I guess I should at least say something…_

"So… I take it you and your brother don't get along, then?" the blond managed to squeak out, another spoonful of soup hovering before his mouth.

"No," Sasuke said quickly, though there was no spite in his words.

"Did something happen between you two?" Naruto continued, causing the Uchiha to stare up from his spiraling noodles. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked…"

"It's fine, Naruto," Sasuke said, finally taking a sip of his soup. "Yeah, you could say that something came between us. We used to get along pretty well… at least as well as you could expect from two brothers. Things started to go badly right around the time my parents died, though."

_Shit… touchy subject… what's the matter with you, Naruto?_

"Look, you don't have to tell me all this if you don't want to," the blond said, setting down his spoon with a slight clank.

"Would you shut up and listen?" the Uchiha snapped before catching himself. "I'm sorry, it's just… well, let me finish, okay?"

Naruto nodded dumbly and watched his partner, not really knowing quite what to say. Did Sasuke want to tell him about this? Or was he just getting it out of the way now, since they'd have to go over it eventually for their project? Either way, Sasuke had the blond's full attention as he continued his tale.

"Like I was saying, things were pretty good between us until they died – that was five years ago. Itachi was usually busy learning about the Uchiha business from my dad, but he would always make time for me when he could. Even if it was just sitting out on the front porch to talk for a few minutes, he tried to keep me involved, and I never felt like I was a burden to him. About a month before that night, though, he started changing. He had just turned eighteen, and I guess he started to take things a bit more seriously, since he could legally take over the Uchiha business at any time. We stopped having are little talks after dinner, and any time I'd bring it up, he'd just shoo me away and poke my forehead, saying, 'Sorry, Sasuke. Maybe next time.'"

"Is that all? It sounds like he just got busy…"

"No, it wasn't as simple as that," Sasuke said, flashing Naruto a quick glare. "He was out late at night – sometimes until two or three in the morning – and then he'd be gone early the next day. I heard my parents talk about it sometimes, and they weren't sure where he went. They were worried about him… I didn't know what to think. I knew that something was wrong, though. You could see it in his eyes. They weren't… gentle, like they used to be. I know that sounds, but I can't really describe it any other way."

Naruto thought about Iruka, how he always had that warm glint in his eye. "No, I know exactly what you mean."

"Good… because things only got worse from there. He would fight with my parents, say how they were slowly destroying the company, but weren't doing anything about it. Suddenly that was all that mattered – the family business, his inheritance, and all the responsibility that came with it. He stopped connecting with us, one by one, starting with my dad. In the week before they died, he would barely even speak to them, and anything he said to me was utterly insincere. That wasn't my brother… somehow he'd died, and I was left with this sadistic bastard who only wanted to toy with me."

"Did he change at all after… you know…" Naruto asked, scratching his head nervously. Was he prying too deep now?

"Not really," Sasuke murmured, downing the rest of his soup. "If anything he got worse. It was like, with them out of his way, he could finally cement his position as the head of the Uchiha, and I simply became his backup, an heir to the company should something happen to him. Then, when the Uchiha Corporation merged with Akatsuki, things only grew worse, since he had twelve other CEOs to rely on. I'm nothing to him now."

"Maybe he just took their deaths hard, too," the blond offered, though he was trying not to incur the Uchiha's wrath. "I mean, we all deal with losses like that differently…"

"Ha! You think Itachi cared?" Sasuke said with a half-hearted smirk. "Not likely. He was counting down the days until they kicked the bucket."

"But, couldn't he feel guilty about that? Maybe he's just afraid to admit it."

"You don't get it, do you, Naruto? He never once shed a tear over them… not even when he found them dead at home. He didn't care!"

"So… he was the one who found them?" Naruto asked after a few moments of uneasy silence. "What happened, exactly?"

_Did I really just ask that? Oh God, here it comes…_

"You really want to know?" Sasuke said, clearly contemplating whether he should discuss the subject any further. "All right, I'll tell you. I was eleven at the time. It was the middle of August – really hot, that day. I remember because I went out in our canoe to the island in the middle of our lake. I did that sometimes during the summer, just to spend the day swimming or climbing trees. Anyway, when it got dark, I paddled back home, and I knew right away that something was wrong. The house was all black, and there were red and blue police lights flashing in the driveway. I scrambled up the front steps, and past a couple of officers who tried to stop me, but then I bumped into Itachi. Behind him, in the master bedroom, my parents were lying in a pool of blood, gunshot wounds in their chests."

"Sasuke, I…"

"I froze right there, just staring at them. They'd been fine that morning. I'd talked to them over breakfast! And now they were dead! I just screamed and buried my head into Itachi's shirt, tears running down my face. He never said a word, though. He just rubbed my head, and walked me outside while the policemen searched the house. I never saw him cry, Naruto. When I woke up the next morning, he was gone. He'd left to go talk to some lawyers, and didn't even bother to take me with him. That's when I knew I was alone in the world."

Naruto was shocked, not so much by Sasuke's story, as he knew to an extent what had happened, but more so by Sasuke himself, who now had a small trickle of tears running down his face. This was genuine sorrow the Uchiha felt, that he was sharing with Naruto, and for what? Surely not just for some stupid English project? No, this meant something, and it was Naruto's job to show that he understood the significance of those trace tears.

"Sasuke, I'm sorry," the blond said, glancing awkwardly to the side. "I know what it's like to lose someone like that…"

"What?! How could you possibly know what it's like to go through something like that? You think that just because your dad was a fucking maniac that you have some profound knowledge of the world?" Sasuke snapped, knocking his chair over as he rose to his feet. "You probably don't even remember what it was like. What were you, like, three? How dare you even think that you understand what I went through?!"

"Sasuke, I didn't mean –"

"Shut up, Naruto! Just… leave me the fuck alone!"

In the heat of the moment, Naruto followed the Uchiha to the door, trying to calm him down, "Would you just wait and listen for one minute!"

"I said leave me alone!" Sasuke roared as he delivered a powerful blow to the blond's cheek, sending him staggering backward in shock.

They stood for a second staring at one another, Naruto trying to catch the blood dripping from his mouth with a spare hand. Sasuke looked at his hand, the knuckles reddened from the punch, before rushing out of the apartment into the storm. The blond after him for a few moments until he realized that he could not possibly breathe hard enough to keep up with so much blood in his mouth. Deciding it was a lost cause, he made his way over to the kitchen and grabbed an icepack out of the freeze. As he placed the pack on his stinging cheek, Naruto stared at the empty bowls on the table in disbelief.

_Was it something I said?_

Glancing out the window, though, Naruto realized that he was not really concerned with how badly the evening had gone. Instead, his mind could only wonder if Sasuke Uchiha would be all right, braving that horrible storm alone.

---

Well, there you have it! More angst from Sasuke and confusion from Naruto. Why did Sasuke run off like he did? What will Naruto do now that the tension is growing between him and his secret love? Well, you'll just have to wait and see. So, until next time, and remember - review!


	11. And We Note Our Place With Bookmarkers

11. And We Note Our Place With Bookmarkers

Kakashi Hatake sat on the red sofa in his apartment, casually flipping through the pages of his favorite hentai novel by lamplight. It was a cozy little apartment – messy, but not glaringly so. The beige carpeting was clear, with various pieces of furniture – chairs and end tables, mostly – arranged around the average-sized television. Old magazines and completed novels were strewn carelessly across the coffee table, and the fluorescent light in the kitchenette flickered intermittently behind him as he read.

He glanced momentarily at the clock beside his lamp, making sure he actually had enough time to finish his current chapter before getting around to grading papers for the next day. It wasn't so much that he didn't want to grade them, because he really did care about his students and wished to monitor their success, but at the same time he _had_ to see which twin Susanne would marry in the latest _Make Out Paradise_ novel. So, seeing that it was only 6:30, Kakashi flicked the page over and commenced his reading, only to hear a dramatic pounding on his door moments later.

_Now, who could that be?_

Clamping his book shut, the eccentric teacher rose and moseyed over to the door, which he casually pulled open, watching as the misty rain blew into the apartment. There, standing in his doorway, was a certain raven-haired teen who stood rubbing his bare arms vigorously as he glared up at the man.

"Ah, Sasuke," Kakashi said, stepping to the side, "please, come in."

Sasuke stomped inside and shook some of the excess water from his borrowed shorts as he kicked off his shoes. No longer sopping wet, the Uchiha started for the bathroom, only to be stopped by Kakashi after a few steps.

"So, how did things go with Naruto this afternoon?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Sasuke said, brushing the teacher's hand from his shoulder.

"Oh, I see. When did you start liking orange, then?" Kakashi asked, indicating the Uchiha's glaring shorts.

Sasuke glanced at his clothes for a moment and, realizing that lying would be useless, heaved a conceding sigh. "It was a disaster, all right?"

"Ah, I'm sorry to hear that. Do you want to talk about it?" the silver-haired man asked as he took a seat on the couch.

"Like you don't know," Sasuke snapped as he started once more towards the bathroom. "You planned for all of this, didn't you?"

"You're still going on about that, huh?" Kakashi muttered, taking a seat on the sofa.

It was true, of course. He had hoped that Sasuke would be paired with Naruto after seeing the connection between the two. But he certainly hadn't set them up; it was just a lucky coincidence. Kakashi knew that he would have a tough time convincing Sasuke of this, though, so instead he decided to continue feigning ignorance. Things were just easier that way.

"Now, are you going to tell me what happened, or do you just plan to sulk for the rest of the night?" Kakashi said, prying open his book once more.

Sasuke froze in his tracks and glared at the teacher over his shoulder. "You want to know what happened? You suddenly care about my feelings, now that you've already forced Naruto on me? Now you want _me_ to feel like I'm in control, just so you can learn how your plan's going? Well, fine! I'll tell you! I told him all about Itachi and my parents! I opened up to him, let him know every little detail about my tortured past! Are you happy?!"

"Yes," Kakashi murmured, turning the page of his book absent-mindedly. "Now we're getting somewhere. So, if you were telling Naruto all about your past, why did you decide to come over here? It doesn't sound like things were going bad to me."

"You _would_ think that," Sasuke said with a scowl. "Why can't you just accept that I don't want to get close to Naruto?"

"I think you're just afraid of what he means to you."

"Maybe I am! Is there something wrong with that? Haven't I been through enough in my life?" the Uchiha exclaimed, finally turning to face his teacher. "I don't want to be left alone like that again!"

"But if you keep pushing everyone away, Sasuke, you're going to be just as alone," Kakashi replied, setting down his book as he turned his full attention to the raven-haired youth. "I know it's hard to lose someone you care about, but you have to grow from that experience and move on."

"What about Obito?" Sasuke asked with an accusing sneer. "Aren't you just as guilty? Or are you going to tell me that you don't visit his grave every morning before school?"

_He's got me there…_

"This isn't about me, Sasuke. You know perfectly well how important Naruto is to you, and you can't just keep running away from it. Sooner or later you'll have to accept that."

"I don't have to do anything! I don't need you or Naruto… or anyone! I'm better off alone anyway," Sasuke muttered, turning his head awkwardly to the side.

"Now, I know you don't really believe that," Kakashi replied, raising his eyebrow skeptically.

"Yes, I do! I don't need anyone!" the Uchiha stammered, though he intentionally avoided Kakashi's gaze.

"Then why did you come here today?"

Sasuke froze, his eyes unfocused as he let the words sink in. It was only for a brief moment, a flinch really, and as soon as the initial shock wore off his scowl returned, but it was too late – Kakashi already knew he'd won.

"Look, I know it's easier to say that you don't need anyone, to pretend that you don't care about the rest of the world, but it's all a lie, Sasuke," Kakashi continued, studying the Uchiha as he spoke. "Deep down, you know that other people do matter to you, people like Itachi, Shikamaru… and even Naruto. As much as you may think you're keeping them out of your life, you're subconsciously letting them in because you need someone to rely on, someone to help ease your burdens in times of trouble. It's not some big conspiracy where we're all trying to force ourselves on you; it's just what we do. We form bonds, even if we don't really know why. Do you know what I mean, Sasuke?"

"Whatever," Sasuke said with a dismissive wave of his hand as he started for the bathroom.

"Well, in any case, leave your wet things outside the door, okay? I'll try to get the dried for tomorrow."

The Uchiha's response was a mere grunt as he slammed the bathroom door shut, causing Kakashi to heave an exasperated sigh.

_Sometimes I hate that kid…_

Of course, Kakashi knew this was an exaggeration, but he couldn't help but feel a bit irritated by his conversation with Sasuke. Even though he had come out on top, the teen had gotten a few good jabs in, a fact that the teacher found quite disconcerting. Was he really just a hypocrite? Sure, he was still dealing with Obito's death, but that really put him in the same position as Sasuke? No, that was different. Sasuke was resisting these new relationships; Kakashi simply wasn't ready to move on.

It wasn't even that particular aspect of the conversation that bothered Kakashi the most, though. The problem was that, deep down, the silver-haired man knew that, even if Sasuke recognized how foolish his actions were, he was stubborn enough to cling to them just to spite the rest of the world. He wasn't stupid, of course – Sasuke was always at the top of his class, after all – but at the same time he didn't like being proven wrong. Somehow, even after hearing Kakashi's reasoning that night, by the next morning the Uchiha would be back to pushing people away. Sometimes Kakashi had to wonder whether his efforts were truly worthwhile. He knew it was the right thing to do, and he wanted nothing more than to make Sasuke happy, but if nothing ever came of it, was it better just to let the teen do whatever he wanted?

_No… that's not right. Sasuke knows he's wrong… we just have to get him to accept that fact. Maybe, just maybe, Naruto can convince him that these human connections are a good thing…_

Before Kakashi could dwell on this much longer, he heard the shower start running and decided to get moving. He walked over to the bathroom, where he found Sasuke's drenched clothes laying on the carpet. After bundling these up and tucking them underneath his arm, the teacher started on his way out of the apartment for the laundry room. Just before stepping out into the dwindling storm, he grabbed an umbrella from off the wall began opening it as he threw open the door. It was then that Kakashi noticed a police officer with long, white hair standing in his doorway, his hand extended as if he was about to knock.

"Ah, Kakashi! Just the man I was looking for," the man said with a grin, tucking his hand into his dark blue uniform. "You got a minute?"

"Sure, Jiraiya," Kakashi replied, raising his black umbrella to shield both him and his guest. "I just need to throw some of Sasuke's clothes in the dryer."

"Oh, so Sasuke's here? What happened this time?" the older man inquired with a knowing smirk. "Romance troubles?"

"Yeah, you could say that… but I know you didn't come here just to make small talk, Jiraiya. What've you learned?"

"Hmm, no foolin' you, huh?" the officer chuckled as they walked stepped into the laundry room. "Well, it's probably for the best that we stay away from Sasuke for now, if you catch my drift."

"So it's Itachi, then?" Kakashi inferred, throwing the Uchiha's damp clothes into the dryer. "Can you hand me one of those dryer sheets there?"

Jiraiya pulled one of the sheets from a nearby box and handed it to his friend. "Yeah, we've found a couple of witnesses who can connect Itachi to Akatsuki – Zabuza Momochi and his adoptive son, Haku. Apparently they were neighbors of Kisame Hoshigaki over in Mizu before the Akatsuki merger, and they can confirm that Itachi met with both Kisame and Tobi about a week before the Uchiha murders."

"I see… so is your department ready to make a move, then?" Kakashi asked while depositing some quarters in the dryer.

"Well, that's just it. Even though this is a huge step forward, the fact is this case has been cold for so many years now. Right now, we have motive, and witnesses to support our theory, but it's all circumstantial at this point. Unless we can find some concrete evidence, we'll never be able to convince a jury of our theory."

"So, what are you planning to do, then?" the silver-haired teacher continued, leaning against a nearby washer. "Or do you need me to look in to something for you?"

"No, I couldn't ask you to do that," Jiraiya replied with a sigh. "We're working on getting a search warrant from the DA, but you know how Homura is. It might take us months to convince him that this is worthwhile, just because he wants to jerk us around. How an asshole like got to be in such a position of power is beyond me."

"Homura, huh? Yeah, I remember my dad talking about him from time to time. Sounds like a hassle," Kakashi mused before sitting in silence for a few moments, waiting for the officer to reply. When nothing was said, he sighed and placed a hand to his masked chin in thought. "Look, Jiraiya, you used to work on the force with Dad, and you've been there for me ever since he passed away. If there's something you need me to do, just say so and I'll do it."

"Yeah, I know you will," Jiraiya groaned in irritation, scratching the back of his head awkwardly as he spoke. "That's just it, though. I don't want you to do this out of some gratitude towards me. You have to really mean it, all right?"

"Sure, sure… what is it?"

"Well, here's the thing," the white-haired officer began with a deep breath. "I know you've tried to be a father-figure for Sasuke ever since his parents died, but I still need to ask – if we make a move on Akatsuki, will you be willing to take over as Sasuke's guardian, at least during the trial period? Now, remember, I want you to really think about this, Kakashi. This is a big commitment we're talking about here, so don't just say yes because you think it'll make me happy."

Kakashi pretended to think about this for a second, closing his eyes tightly and furrowing his brow as he listened to the drone of the dryer. Finally, he opened his eyes and looked to Jiraiya with a smile. "Yes, I'd be honored to. In fact, if you can actually win your battle in court, I'll sign the adoption papers the next day."

Jiraiya let out a sigh of relief, the tension flowing right out of his body. "Whew… you have no idea how good it is to hear you say that. I mean, we probably could've found another guardian if we had to, but I doubt they'd have Sasuke's best interests at heart. After all, if we can put Itachi away, Sasuke'll be the heir to the Uchiha fortune. Besides, as far as I can tell, Sasuke doesn't really care for that many people besides you."

"Yeah, he can be a bit picky at times," Kakashi admitted, glancing over at the timer on the dryer. "So… now that we've got that out of the way, do you mind if I ask how your next book is coming along?"

"Oh, that!" Jiraiya chuckled, pulling a small notepad out of his back pocket. "Well, it's been going pretty slowly, to tell you the truth. I haven't really had a chance to seek out any good inspiration."

"Hmm… is that because all the nude beaches are closed during the fall?" the teacher said with a knowing smirk.

"Nude beaches? Ha! No, I don't go to those kinds of places. It's all about finding the right girl in nature," the officer said, his eyes widening as he imagined the possible scenes. "Like this one time, I was taking a walk through the woods when I came upon a little spring. I heard some giggling there and peeked through the bushes to find a couple of girls skinny-dipping. Oh… I get all excited just thinking about it! That's what I mean by inspiration!"

Kakashi eyed the now-drooling man skeptically. "So you expect to just stumble upon some naked girl wherever you go?"

"All it takes is vigilance, Kakashi," Jiraiya replied, tucking the notepad back in his pocket. "You should join me sometime – see the master at work."

"I'll pass. I'd rather just read the finished product."

"Oh, that's right, you just like the romance. Well, I'll be sure to include a nice, sappy scene just for you, all right?"

"I'd like that," Kakashi said just as the dryer chimed. "Ah, well, I'd better get these clothes back to Sasuke."

"Sure, sure," Jiraiya replied, waving his hand as he stepped out of the laundry room. "Remember, I'm not sure if we'll ever get through to Homura, but you be prepared just in case, all right?"

"Of course," the teacher answered as he pulled the toasty clothes from the dryer. "And hurry up with that book. I can only read the same ones so many times."

"I'll see what I can do," the white-haired cop said, tipping his cap before departing into the sprinkling night.

With Sasuke's clothes in one hand and the umbrella in the other, Kakashi started back for his apartment, thinking over his conversation with Jiraiya as he went. He'd known that Jiraiya was investigating the Uchiha murders, but he had no idea just how close they were to making an arrest. Should he mention something to Sasuke about it? No, of course not – there was no need for Sasuke to know at this point. As far as Kakashi knew, Sasuke didn't even think that his brother could be involved. And what if Jiraiya was wrong? Sure, it made sense that Itachi might've had a hand in the deaths of his parents, but it wasn't worth putting that to chance. Yes, he would keep this to himself, at least for now. Maybe when it came closer to the trial, he could ease Sasuke into this new reality.

By the time Kakashi had reached this conclusion, he had already arrived outside his apartment, which he stepped inside after taking a breath. He would have to control himself, lest Sasuke realize that something was up. As luck would have it, though, Sasuke was nowhere to be found, and Kakashi felt a twinge of panic.

_Great, did he run away again? But… where could he have gone? I have his clothes right here…_

Before letting his thoughts go out of control, the teacher decided to check the guest bedroom, which he pried open just a crack so he could peer inside. Much to his relief, he found the raven-haired boy snoring gently, apparently feeling exhausted after his emotional evening.

"Good night, Sasuke," Kakashi whispered as he sealed the door shut.


	12. The Boxer

Well, sorry that this chapter is late again, guys. I was busy with the holiday and everything. But, this is a longer chapter, and we get to see another major character appear, so it's all good. I want to thank those of you who reviewed, as well as the rest of you for reading. Now, on with the chapter!

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12. The Boxer

Sasuke awoke the next morning feeling more exhausted than he had when he went to sleep. Even though he'd gotten a full night's rest, his dreams had been haunted with memories of his parents' deaths. It had been years since he had nightmares about that fateful night, and it angered him more than anything else that they'd returned.

_Dammit, Naruto…_

Sasuke knew that he had no one to blame but himself for his current predicament, though. Naruto had tried to talk the Uchiha out of telling his story, but Sasuke hadn't listened. No, he'd momentarily forgotten his goal and revealed everything about his tortured past. What had he been thinking, letting Naruto get to him like that? And then to react the way he did, by snapping at that perfectly innocent blond – it wasn't like him to lose his cool so easily. Why did he even yell at Naruto to begin with? It wasn't like he'd done anything wrong – in fact, he was just trying to help, and Sasuke went and threw it back in his face. Sasuke felt guilty about that, in spite of himself, knowing that if anyone could possibly identify with that overwhelming sense of loss, it was Naruto.

_Maybe Kakashi was right… maybe I am just trying to delay the inevitable…_

Sasuke shook his head, clearing this thought from his head immediately. No, Kakashi was wrong – he _could_ keep Naruto out of his life. All he needed to do was remain focused and stop telling the blond all about himself. It wouldn't be easy, but Sasuke was determined enough to see it through.

Thus, in this mindset, the Uchiha stepped out of bed, scratching his bare side groggily as he searched the room for his clothes. After a few moments, he realized that Kakashi must have left them outside, and stepped out into the hallway, dressed only in his navy boxers. He wasn't in any way concerned about being seen in this state of undress, as he was certain that Kakashi would still be gone visiting Obito's grave at such an early hour.

He ultimately found his clothes resting on the coffee table in the main room of the apartment, though he grimaced at the sight of the vibrant orange shorts sitting atop the pile. After throwing these clothes on, he headed over to the kitchenette, where he fixed himself a bowl of Rice Krispies. As poured the milk over his meager breakfast, resting his head on his hand, Sasuke found himself thinking about Naruto once again.

_Even when I try to forget about him, he always manages to force himself back in. Maybe I should just leave his clothes here, pretend that I never had them… Hmm, I'm sure Sakura would love that, seeing me roaming the streets of Konoha in my boxers…_

As funny as this thought was, Sasuke quickly erased it from his mind and turned his attention back to his cereal, which he proceeded to shovel monotonously into his mouth. He really wasn't sure what he was going to do about Naruto, after his outburst the night before. They still had to finish their project, but what could he possibly do to set things right, without further endangering himself? He couldn't just ignore it, but if he made too big a deal of it, he had a feeling that he'd just end up closer to Naruto, which he wanted to avoid.

By the time Sasuke had finished his bowl of cereal, he realized that he had only waffled back and forth on the issue, with both sides seeming equally dangerous. Rather than dwell on it further, though, he decided to simply head home and wait for things to work out on their own. Sasuke knew that Kakashi would want to give him a ride home later, but the Uchiha wasn't exactly thrilled with the idea of listening to his teacher pry into his love life any more. Thus, he simply stepped out of the apartment and started down the street, enjoying the still, Saturday morning.

To think, it had only been five days since Sasuke had first bumped into that blond in the halls. Five days – that was all it took for Naruto to barge into his life and turn everything upside down. It wasn't too late, yet – Sasuke could still keep him out if he tried – but Sasuke knew that it was growing increasingly difficult to keep Naruto off his mind.

_What is it about him that's so damn appealing, anyway? He's just a loud, stupid, obnoxious idiot… everyone knows it!_

But, on the other hand, Sasuke knew that this only scratched the surface of Naruto Uzumaki. Sure, he was an unpredictable knucklehead, but that all meant something more. Naruto was optimistic, perhaps a bit naïve, and generally a good-natured soul. He was selfless, surprisingly wise, when he chose to be, but also mysterious, filled with a sorrow that he kept hidden beneath a mask of blatant geniality.

_And that hair that glows like sunshine, or those sapphire eyes, that Cheshire smile…_

Sasuke paused at this thought and leaned over the edge of a chain-link fence to his side, staring at long grass as it blew in the morning breeze. What could he do about this? They'd had taken on a life of their own, now, these feelings that he'd tried so hard to drown through sheer willpower. He needed a distraction – anything to keep his mind off Naruto, if only for a moment, just to give him a break.

"Up next for Konoha in the high jump: Rock Lee!"

The Uchiha glanced up in surprise at this sudden noise, to find that he had stopped outside Konoha High. Looking to his left, he found a decent crowd gathered at the stadium, where he could see a small clump of people running around the track.

"Hmm… is there a meet already? Seems too early – an exhibition, maybe?"

Thinking that watching the track team for a while might just be the distraction he was looking for, Sasuke hopped over the fence and started for the stadium. It was a short walk across the field, and by the time he arrived he found that another race had started. He made his way through the crowd so that he could see, brushing up against a few other students as he passed. When he reached the edge of the crowd, he managed to catch the last few seconds of the race as a young brunet sprinted over the finish line.

"And the winner of the second heat is: Kiba Inuzuka!"

_Inuzuka… where have I heard that name before?_

It struck Sasuke like a bolt of lighting – Kiba Inuzuka was Naruto's roommate. That meant Naruto was probably there, somewhere. He had to get out of there, before they ran into each other. With his eyes wide in momentary panic, and a light sweat forming on his brow, the teen spun around on his heel and darted towards the exit, only to run headfirst into a redhead, knocking them both to the ground. For a few moments, the Uchiha was too dazed to realize whom exactly he had crashed into, but when he heard the other teen speak, he felt his heart sink with dread.

"Uchiha…" came the redhead's harsh voice, dripping with venom. "Just who the hell do you think you are?"

"Look, Gaara, I don't want any trouble. Let's just forget this whole thing ever happened," Sasuke said as he picked himself off the ground, staring at the kanji tattoo on his opponent's forehead.

"You'd like that, wouldn't you?" Gaara replied with a sneer. "Knock me to the ground, and walk away with no consequence whatsoever. Too bad I won't allow it."

"Come on, I don't want to fight you," the Uchiha said, trying to keep his cool as the menacing redhead approached. "I'm sorry I ran into you, but we're both fine. What could you possibly have to gain from fighting me?"

Sasuke knew that it was pointless to try to talk sense into the infamous Gaara Subakuno. He was feared by just about everyone in school – all the sensible people, at least – because it didn't take much to set him off. Usually he was simply looking for an excuse to shed some blood, and now it looked like he was particularly determined to beat Sasuke to a pulp.

"What do I have to gain?" Gaara asked, now standing face to face with the raven-haired teen. "That's a funny thing to ask. Are you stalling? Could it be that the great Sasuke Uchiha is afraid to defend himself? "

"It's not that," Sasuke said with a snarl, realizing that their little argument was drawing quite a bit of attention. "I just want to know what to tell everyone at your funeral."

"That's more like it," the redhead responded, his eyes flashing with an almost lustful anticipation. "Well, then, let's just say I'm going to take you down a notch, Uchiha."

"Hmm… I'm surprised – I'd never pegged you as the jealous type, Subakuno," Sasuke said with a provoking smirk.

_What am I doing? If he wasn't going to kill me before, he certainly is now…_

"A comedian… but I'm serious, Uchiha. We have the same eyes, you know – those lonely, cold eyes. I'm going to show how different we really are, though. Now, enough chitchat – let's let our fists do the talking."

Sasuke barely had time to react to the first strike, as Gaara's fist seemed to come out of nowhere in a powerful uppercut. Luckily, he was able to step back just in time to avoid the brunt of the blow, so that the redhead's knuckles only scraped his chin. Before he could recover from this sudden dodge, however, Sasuke found that his opponent was already rushing in with a left hook, giving the Uchiha no choice but to counter with an attack of his own. Lunging forward, he delivered a powerful right kick, hoping to catch Gaara's fist mid-punch. Much to Sasuke's dismay, though, Gaara was able to sidestep this assault, leaving the Uchiha completely open to retaliation.

His balance thrown off from the powerful kick, Sasuke could only watch as his redheaded opponent came rushing in with his fist, a sadistic smirk on his face. In an instant, Sasuke received a devastating blow to his left cheek, sending him skidding on the ground. Lying there with his scraped arm bleeding freely onto the pavement, the Uchiha groaned and tried to locate his opponent, but the chaos of the surrounding crowd made it difficult to find that particular redhead. When he finally did catch sight of Gaara, it was too late, for he was looming over Sasuke with his fist cocked back.

"Do you feel it, Uchiha? The vast difference in our power? You're no match for me!"

With an almost maniacal laugh, Gaara thrust forward with his fist, leaving Sasuke with little choice but to wait and take his punishment. Before Gaara could land his blow, however, he was suddenly kicked in the face by what appeared to be a blur of orange and yellow that sprang from the crowd.

_No… it can't be…_

"Who the hell are you?" Gaara asked, wiping the fresh blood from the corner of his mouth.

"Naruto Uzumaki – and I'm your worst nightmare."

_Did he really just say that?_

"Oh really? All right, then – I can always go for some more blood."

With that, Gaara lunged at his new opponent, catching an unprepared Naruto right in the gut. The vulpine boy keeled over at this, the wind having been knocked out of him, leaving him wide open for another attack. After several successive blows to the blond's stomach, Gaara kneed Naruto in the chin, sending him to the ground in a shower of blood.

Sasuke tried to move so that he could intervene in this clearly one-sided battle, but found he was being restrained by a few members of his fanclub. He tried to shake the girls off, but it was to no avail.

"Stay still, Sasuke. I need to put a bandage on this arm of yours!"

"Out of the way, Sakura! You're doing it all wrong!"

"Shut up, Ino-pig! I've taken classes on first aid, you'll just mess things up!"

Sasuke blocked the ensuing argument of the two fangirls out of his mind, instead trying to follow Naruto's movements in the fight. After having been knocked to the ground, the blond looked to be down for the count, with smeared blood running from his nose. When Gaara approached to deliver the finishing blow, however, Naruto's eyes snapped open, a wide grin on his face.

"Gotcha!"

With one quick kick, Naruto managed to take out one of Gaara's legs, effectively tripping the unsuspecting redhead. In a flash, they changed positions, as Gaara collapsed onto the pavement with Naruto leaping on top of him. Thus pinned to the ground, the murderous redhead could only growl as he struggled to break free.

"You…"

"Hehe… You shouldn't have underestimated me."

"I'll _kill you!_"

His muscles straining against his subduer, Gaara managed to break one arm free and latch onto Naruto's shoulder, his fingers digging into the flesh like claws. Naruto winced in pain, but maintained his focus and tried to pry Gaara's hand from his shoulder. Soon, he had successfully forced the redhead's arm back to the ground, though Gaara ripped the sleeve from Naruto's shirt in the process.

"Like I said… now I've got you," the blond sneered, blood running down his exposed shoulder.

Gaara merely stared up at Naruto in what appeared to be horror. Sasuke could understand this sentiment, in a way, for he had never seen Naruto so determined before. It was almost as if he was possessed and had somehow directed his entire spirit towards taking Gaara down. Truly, it was a terrifying force, seeing this raw willpower at work, and Sasuke was just glad that he didn't have to face that intensity himself.

_Why are you doing this, Naruto? Why do you want to protect me, even after what I did?_

"_Uzumaki!_" Gaara roared, his newfound terror blending with his rooted wrath.

Using all of his effort, the redhead managed to push Naruto to the side and climb upon him, reversing their roles as they tumbled along the pavement. This was quickly countered by the blond, and they continued in this manner for a minute or so, the rocky ground digging into their backsides as they moved. Sweat and blood rolled down both of their faces, and their breathing grew heavy as exhaustion finally caught up with them. Soon, they could not even muster the strength to push one another over, and simply stared at each other, Naruto having pinned Gaara to the ground once more.

"Tired, Uzumaki?" the redhead managed to say with a semi-triumphant smirk.

"Shut up."

With this sigh, Naruto used the last of his energy to ram his head against Gaara's, causing his eyes to go wide in shock as a thin stream of blood began to trickle down their foreheads. Feeling victorious, the vulpine boy rolled to the side, lying spread-eagled on the pavement as the surrounding crowd grew deathly quiet.

"Did Naruto just beat Gaara?"

"Beat him? He kicked his ass!"

Sasuke could only stare at the two motionless teens in shock, not knowing quite what to think. Naruto had actually done it: he'd won in a fight with Gaara, but more importantly, he'd saved Sasuke. Before the significance of this fact could sink in, however, Sasuke's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of one woman's angry shrieks rising over the crowd.

"What the hell is going on here?!"

Glancing over his shoulder in surprise, Sasuke found an old, but youthful, blond woman standing with her hands on her hips, her mouth contorted to a frightening scowl.

_Shit… not Tsunade. What's she doing here?_

"Oh, Principal Tsunade!" Sakura exclaimed, snapping to attention at the sight of her superior. "Gaara started a fight with Sasuke. Naruto joined in about halfway through and finished things up."

"I see… so it looks like I have three punks to deal with," Tsunade replied, patting her pink-haired pet on the head as she turned her glare towards Sasuke. "Uchiha, you and Uzumaki meet me in my office. Sakura, go tell the paramedics by the track to come deal with Subakuno ASAP."

Sasuke only nodded dumbly as Tsunade stormed off towards the school, still overwhelmed by all that had happened. As the crowd began to disperse, however, he snapped out of his reverie and approached the blond, who lay bleeding on the pavement, a satisfied grin on his face.

"Come on, Naruto. We'd better go before we incur Tsunade's wrath," Sasuke said, offering a hand to his savior.

Naruto made no response, but simply clasped the Uchiha's hand and struggled to his feet. For a moment he stood there, wobbling slightly, before collapsing back to one knee.

"You all right?" Sasuke asked, leaning down to look the blond in the eyes.

"I'll be fine. I just need to walk it off, that's all." Naruto panted with a weak smile.

This said, Naruto took a few steps forward before falling face-first on the ground, scraping his hand in the process. He winced in pain, but rose once again with renewed determination. Before he could take even one more step, however, Naruto was forced to a halt as Sasuke placed a hand firmly on his shoulder.

"Hold on, you idiot," the Uchiha said as he threw Naruto's arm over his shoulder. "You're in bad enough shape as it is. Consider this my way of returning the favor."

Naruto chuckled, leaning heavily on the raven-haired boy as they started towards the school. "Favor? What do you mean? That Gaara's been asking for a beating for ages."

"You're a terrible liar," Sasuke responded, his eyes fixed forward. "I know perfectly well that you stepped in to save me."

"Well, I couldn't let my English partner get beaten to a pulp, could I?"

"What about you? You look like hell."

Naruto looked down at his raw hands and bare, bloody shoulder and laughed. "Yeah, but he got it worse."

"I'll say. Tsunade was calling the paramedics for him," Sasuke said, though he stopped upon realizing what the consequences of the fight with Gaara might be. "What are you going to tell Tsunade, anyway? She could expel you for this, you know."

"I'll tell her the truth."

_What _is _the truth, though? Why the hell did he step in? Was he really willing to overlook everything that happened last night to save me? Does he actually care about me that much, that he'd forgive me even when I never once asked for forgiveness? Is that… love?_

The duo walked on in silence as these thoughts crossed Sasuke's mind, and soon they arrived at Principal Tsunade's office. There, the Uchiha tentatively knocked on the office door, which was answered immediately by a surprisingly gruff voice.

"Come in!"

Together, Naruto and Sasuke forced open the door and stepped inside, taking their seats in front of the intimidating woman, who seemed to loom over them from her desk. She looked back and forth between the two for a moment, apparently trying to decide who should be her first victim.

"All right, which one of you wants to tell me why I shouldn't expel you both right now?"

"Principal Tsunade, I was –"

"It's my fault," Sasuke interrupted, causing Naruto to stop mid-sentence.

"Really, Uchiha? What happened, exactly?" Tsunade asked, looking quite shocked at Sasuke's confession.

"Well, the thing is, I wasn't paying any attention to where I was going, and I ran right into Gaara."

"So he decided to fight you on the spot?"

"No, to tell you the truth, I egged him on a bit," Sasuke continued, looking at his hands with feigned shame. "He swung at me first, but I kind of deserved it."

"I see, so Gaara was the one that actually started the fight, but you provoked him. I'll take that into consideration," Tsunade said, knitting her fingers in thought. "Now, where do you come into the picture, Uzukmaki? I can tell that you didn't just get caught in the scuffle, so fess up."

Naruto wiped some of the drying blood off his chin with his thumb before replying. "Okay, so I was at the meet today to cheer Kiba on, and I was watching from the bleachers so I could see a bit better. When I was up there, I saw that fight break out between Gaara and Sasuke, and I decided to step in."

"Why, exactly, did you feel compelled to become involved with their fight?" Tsunade continued, her eyes narrowing as she interrogated the blond.

"Because I was worried about him – Sasuke, that is," Naruto admitted, glancing momentarily to the side at the aforementioned Uchiha. "I mean, I'm sure Sasuke would've been fine on his own, but I didn't want to leave anything to chance with Gaara. You've heard the stories about him, haven't you? They say he killed a guy once –"

"I don't care about the latest rumors, Uzumaki, but I would like to know one thing: since when do you care about Uchiha, here? From what I understand, most guys have hated his guts for years. If you really feared for his safety, there must be some good reason for it."

Naruto looked around anxiously, hoping to find some distraction from the current situation. His pleading gaze finally settled on Sasuke, who let out a heavy sigh before interrupting the conversation once more.

"Look, does it really matter why Naruto decided to protect me? The important thing is that he felt obligated to help me, which perfectly explains why he stepped into our fight. So, can we just move on?"

Tsunade glared at Sasuke, clearly trying to decide whether she should ignore the boy's request or listen to his reasoning. After a few seconds, however, she sat back in her chair and rested her head on her hand.

"Fine, we can move on to your punishment, then. Now, from what I can tell, neither of you were responsible for starting the fight with Subakuno, but at the same time I can't just let you both off the hook. This _is_ a school, after all, and you were fighting on school premises, but I'll be lenient. You both have detention for the next two hours."

_Is that all?_

"What about Gaara? Aren't you gonna punish him?" Naruto pouted as he slouched down in his chair.

"No, I think you've punished him enough, Uzumaki. Now, Uchiha, you get going to the library. Uzumaki, head over to the nurse's office – I think Shizune's should still be there to treat your wounds."

With a slight nod of his head, Sasuke rose from his chair and started towards the library, feeling oddly relieved to be spending his Saturday in detention. Sure, it wasn't an ideal situation, but it certainly could've been much worse. Then again, this meant that Sasuke would be forced into contact with Naruto for two hours. Could he really handle that?

_No, this is a good thing. I need to talk to Naruto alone… I need to apologize for last night, and ask him why he did what he did. Even if I already know the answer… I need to hear him say it…_

It was quite boring for the Uchiha, sitting alone for about half an hour in the library. He pretended to thumb through a book, but all the letters were just a blur as he continuously glanced over at the door, waiting for his blond to come through. Before long, though, the door swung open and Naruto entered, covered with band-aids and with an ice pack on his forehead. He took a seat across from Sasuke and flipped open a book of his own, apparently avoiding the Uchiha's gaze.

They sat like that for some time, the tension building as each turned the pages of their book absentmindedly. Sasuke had no idea what he should say. He'd worked it all out in his head before, but as soon as Naruto had actually entered the room this carefully constructed speech had crumbled, leaving him scrambling for the right thing to say. When he reached the end of his book, though, Sasuke knew he could no longer pretend to be studying, and decided to just come out and say what was on his mind.

"Naruto… about last night…"

"Hmm? What about it?" Naruto asked, clamping his own book shut as he looked up.

"Oh, come on, you know exactly what I mean. I'm talking about how I stormed out of your apartment like that."

"Yeah, so what?" the blond continued, looking genuinely confused.

"What do you mean, 'so what?' I said that you had no idea what I'd been through! That you didn't even remember what had happened with Kyuubi! Doesn't that bother you?" Sasuke asked, growing irritated by Naruto's behavior.

"Well, sure it did at the time, but I knew you didn't really mean it. You were upset, that's all. It was partially my fault anyway – I shouldn't have asked about Itachi in the first place."

Sasuke clenched his fist and pounded on the table, his eyes wide with frustration. "Are you kidding me?! You're blaming yourself for what happened? What the hell's the matter with you?"

Naruto shrunk back, staring at the Uchiha like a deer caught in the headlights. "W-what do you mean? Was it something I said?"

The raven-haired teen collapsed back in his chair, utterly dumbfounded by the other boy's attitude. "I just don't get it… why, after I treated you so horribly, would you be so willing to forgive me? I didn't even speak to you, but you were willing to protect me from Gaara. Why…"

_Why do you have to make this so damn hard?_

"Fine, if you must know, it's because… it's because I like you, Sasuke," Naruto said, averting his eyes in embarrassment. "I don't know why, but ever since I ran into you that time, I've just wanted to get to know you, to understand you. I know that I'm being selfish and everything, since you've made it perfectly clear that you want nothing to do with me, but I just can't help it, okay? I _like_ you."

Sasuke stared, mouth agape, at the blond for a moment, not knowing quite what to say. He'd known how Naruto felt about him ever since they locked eyes so awkwardly in Kakashi's class, but to hear those suspicions confirmed was so much more profound. Here Naruto was, spilling his heart out to the Uchiha, and all he could think about was how he needed to get away, how getting attached to Naruto would only drag him down. It was with this in mind that Sasuke reached a single conclusion: he was a horrible person.

_I can at least be civil with him, right?_

"Naruto… after we get out of here, do you want to head back to your place and work on our project?" Sasuke offered, trying to break the uncomfortable silence. "I mean, I left my backpack there and everything…"

"Oh, yeah, sure!" Naruto replied, his eyes lighting up at this suggestion. "Besides, I need to give you back your clothes now that they've dried. I don't think orange is really your color."

Looking down at his glaringly bright shorts, Sasuke found his lips curling into a smile against his well as the blond burst into laughter. Yes, he could be civil with Naruto. This could work.

---

Well, there you have it! Last chapter of 2008. I'll have the next chapter up as soon as I can, and remember, review!


	13. Cheeks Flushed With the Night

Well, guys, sorry that this chapter is late, again. I think this is probably one of the most important chapters in the story, though (you'll see why), so hopefully that'll make up for its lateness. As usual, thanks to all of you for reading, and especially those who reviewed. Any praise or criticism is welcomed!

Now, on with the chapter!

* * *

13. Cheeks Flushed with the Night

Sasuke Uchiha stood alongside Naruto Uzumaki just outside the blond's apartment, feeling unusually anxious about his current situation. While Naruto appeared rather calm, fumbling with his keys that glinted in the afternoon sun, Sasuke found his hands were jittery, and a slight sweat was forming on his brow. It was such an unusual feeling for the Uchiha that this nervousness only grew with every passing second.

It was an understandable reaction, really. In the past, Sasuke had always been forced into contact with Naruto through unfortunate circumstances, but now he had sought out the blond's company on his own. He had acknowledged that he did not want Naruto entirely out of his life, but what exactly did that mean? Sasuke had made a similar decision with Shikamaru a few years before, but he couldn't remember ever feeling this apprehensive about it. In a way, he had resigned himself to that friendship, just like he had with Orochimaru and Kakashi. This new connection with Naruto, though, was something he was actively pursuing. He wanted it, and not even Sasuke could deny that this was significant.

"There it is!"

Sasuke snapped out of his thoughts and looked to the side to find Naruto holding a key triumphantly in the air. In a flash, the vulpine boy had the door unlocked, and together he and Sasuke entered the apartment, removing their shoes in the entryway.

"Wait here a minute, okay? I'll go grab your stuff before I forget," Naruto said, holding up a finger as he turned the corner.

"Yeah, sure," the Uchiha replied to no one in particular as he stepped onto the beige carpeting.

It was strange, but even though Sasuke had just been in the apartment the night before, he felt as if he was seeing it for the first time. Details that he had completely ignored now carried special significance, and as a result he wandered around as if in a trance, examining everything with unusual interest.

_So this is Naruto's apartment… well, his and Kiba's, I guess. And that damn dog… I wonder whose movies these are? _Pulp Fiction? Star Wars?_ That could be either of them. What do I even know about Naruto? Here, I'm supposed to know everything about him for this project, and I can't think of anything he likes other than ramen and the color orange…_

"Sasuke? What's up?"

The Uchiha spun his head around to find Naruto standing in the hallway, tilting his head quizzically to the side. Looking down, Sasuke found that he was holding a handful of DVDs he'd taken off the shelf, which he hurriedly put back, a blush crossing his features.

"Oh, uh, sorry. It's nothing."

"Did you want to watch a movie or something? Oh, let's see… do you like _Monty Python and the Holy Grail_? How about _Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles_?" Naruto prodded, placing Sasuke's damp clothes and backpack in a pile by the couch.

"No, no… I was just trying to learn a bit about you… for our project, you know," Sasuke interrupted, scratching his head sheepishly.

_Get a hold of yourself, Sasuke. This is nothing to get so worked up over. He's just a friend…_

"Oh, why don't I give you the grand tour, then? I didn't get a chance to show you around yesterday," Naruto replied, grabbing onto the Uchiha's arm.

"Wait a second, maybe we should just sit down. I mean, you have to rest with those injuries..."

"I'm _fine_," Naruto said, rolling his eyes in an exaggerated manner. "I recover from this kind of stuff pretty quickly. Just look."

Naruto peeled off one of the bandages on his cheek at that moment to reveal a thin, white scar, the cut already healed. "So would you quit being such a worrywart and let me show you around?'

"I'm not worried," Sasuke said defensively. "I just don't want you to get hurt because of me, all right?"

"I'll be careful, now come on!"

With Naruto yanking on his wrist, Sasuke stumbled forward and was forced into the main living space, where the blond began to point excitedly at various objects.

"All right, let's see here. You've already seen most of our movies I guess. Kiba and I have pretty similar tastes, though I like comedies a bit more than the action movies. Those are probably my two favorite genres, though. Now, this," Naruto continued, pointing at Playstation 2 next to the television, "this is mine. Iruka bought me it for me freshman year. It doubles as our DVD player. Moving on…"

Again, Sasuke was quickly jerked down the hallway, struggling to keep up with the enthusiastic blond. Somehow, Sasuke could not believe that Naruto had been lying in a bloody heap on the pavement a few hours before.

_He wasn't kidding about his recovery… and stamina, too. It's unreal…_

At the end of the hallway, Naruto quickly turned to the right and swung open the door, leading Sasuke inside. There, they were greeted by Akamaru, who quickly pounced onto the blond's chest and began licking his face eagerly.

"Ah, there you are," Naruto said, grabbing the dog beneath its front legs. "Here, Sasuke. I know you and Akamaru here got off on the wrong foot last night, so I thought the two of you could make up."

Sasuke glared at the puppy for a moment, who growled in return. Seeing that this was getting nowhere fast, Naruto decided to intervene.

"Go on, Sasuke. Just pet him on the head once. He'll be your friend for life."

"So help me, if he bites my hand again…"

With that, the Uchiha gingerly inched his hand forward, his eyes fixed on Akamaru's bared teeth. Then, with his eyes closed, he gently patted the puppy on the head, bracing himself for retaliation. Instead, the growls ceased, and Sasuke felt only the wet, rubbery texture of the dog's tongue.

"See? I told you he'd like you," Naruto laughed as Akamaru continued to taste the raven-haired boy's hand.

"Stupid dog," Sasuke said, smiling in spite of himself. "Is he yours?"

"Kiba's actually. We keep him in here during the day," the blond said, indicating the room with a nod of his head. "We're technically not supposed to have pets, so we try to keep him quiet."

"So, I take it this is Kiba's room, then?"

"Oh, yeah. My room's across the hall. Here, I'll show you it next."

After setting Akamaru back on the floor, Naruto jerked Sasuke out of the room and burst into his own on the opposite side of the hall. There, the Uchiha quickly turned to his guide, feeling quite irritated by the physically demanding tour.

"Would you stop dragging me around like that?! I swear, it's like you're trying to rip my arm off…"

"Sorry about that," Naruto replied with a grin, "Now, like I was saying, this is my room. You probably got a pretty good look at it last night, but I want to show you around anyway."

Sasuke nodded, following behind the blond as they started walking about the room. Standing beside the unmade bed, they both came to a halt as Naruto began pointing out a few objects on the nightstand.

"This here's a picture of me and Iruka back home in Mizu," the teen began, holding up the photo for Sasuke to see. "It's from our first summer together. I was six, I think, and it was our first real trip together. Of course, Mizu's on the ocean, but it still felt like a big deal to me."

While Naruto spoke, Sasuke examined the photo closely, taking in all the details it had to offer. In the picture, a young, grinning blond sat perched upon the shoulders of a brunet, probably in his early twenties, with the sun shining on their faces. The man – Iruka, Sasuke presumed – had one arm extended to hold the camera, while the other was wrapped tightly around Naruto's leg.

_They look so… happy. But six years old? That wasn't too long after Kyuubi… could he really have gotten over it that quickly?_

"On the way back, I made Iruka stop at this little souvenir shop on the side of the road, where he bought me this little guy," Naruto continued, picking a little, stuffed fox from off his bed as Sasuke set the picture back down. "His name's Paul. I know, I'm probably a bit old to have a stuffed animal like this, but… well, he's special to me."

_Paul? What a goofy name for a fox… then again, I guess he was only six. What would I have named him back then? Leonardo? Yoshi?_

Sasuke took the fox into his hands, eyeing the little tufts of cotton sticking out from a tear in its side. Its white belly was discolored from dirt and other stains, and in general it appeared to be well loved. What Sasuke found particularly interesting, though, was the small medal wrapped around Paul's neck, which appeared shiny and new.

"Did this come with Paul, too?"

"Oh, that? I won that at Ichiraku last year during their annual ramen eating contest. No one else even stood a chance," Naruto said, pounding his chest with pride.

"Are you going to compete again this year?" Sasuke asked, flipping the medal over in his fingers.

"No, I'm retired. I have to give someone else a chance, right?"

Sasuke eyed the blond suspiciously, before setting Paul back down. "They made you retire, didn't they?"

"Yeah," Naruto replied with a sheepish grin. "I demoralized the previous chance, so they asked me not to compete again. They love me there, but they don't want me to intimidate the rest of their business."

"Figures," the Uchiha replied with a playful smirk. "So, why'd you give it to Paul, then?"

"Well, I was going to put it in Gama, but I ran out of room," the vulpine boy said, shrugging his shoulders.

"Gama?"

"Yeah, he's my lockbox," Naruto continued, reaching for a metal frog on his nightstand. After fiddling with the combination lock on its belly for a few moments, he pulled the top open, causing several odds and ends to come spilling out. "See? I keep all of my personal stuff in here."

"Looks like you dropped something," Sasuke chuckled, indicating some of the coins, pins, and scraps of paper that had fallen to the ground.

"Oh, geez. I guess I might've overfilled it a bit, huh?"

"Here, I'll help," the Uchiha said, noting Naruto's filled hands.

After picking up several knick-knacks and handing them to the blond, Sasuke stumbled upon one particular photograph that caught his eye. Examining it closely for a moment, he found that it was a wrinkled picture of a very young Naruto in the arms of a brunette, who was seated next to a grinning, golden-haired man.

"What's this?" Sasuke asked, handing the picture over to his host.

"Oh…" Naruto said quickly, sticking the picture back in Gama. "It's a picture of me and… my parents…"

_Shit. You're such an idiot, Sasuke! Who'd you think they were?_

"I'm sorry, I-I didn't realize," the Uchiha replied, turning his attention to the fluffy Paul on the bedspread.

"No, it's fine, really. It's just… I've never really shown that picture to anyone. I guess it's kinda personal…"

Sasuke couldn't think of anything to say, so instead he and the blond stood in silence for a few moments, each avoiding the other's gaze. Finally, with a quick clearing of his throat, the Uchiha decided to move on from this extreme awkwardness.

"So… should we get working on our project now?"

"Oh, sure," Naruto responded, his voice still sounding somewhat distant. "As long as you don't freak out again…"

For a second, Sasuke wasn't sure whether the teen was being sincere or not. When he saw Naruto's cheeky grin, though, his brief surge of panic subsided, and a subtle smile crossed his lips. "Yeah, sure thing. I'll even let you go first."

With that, the duo lay back on the bed, staring up at the ceiling as they formulated the perfect questions. Soon, the murmurings of the blond stopped, and he turned his head to the side to face the Uchiha, a look of satisfaction on his face.

"All right, I've got it: do you have something that reminds you of your parents? Like a certain picture or something?"

"Hmm," Sasuke began, placing a hand to his chin. "Well, we have plenty of photo albums at home, but I never really go through them. I suppose if I had to pick something, though, I'd say the sword they gave me for my tenth birthday."

"A sword? Really? That's awesome!" Naruto exclaimed, sitting up in excitement.

"Yeah, it was a family heirloom, they said," the Uchiha replied, his eyes fixed on the ceiling. "Really, I was surprised they didn't give it to Itachi, but I guess inheriting the family business was good enough for him."

"Well, whatever the reason, they decided to give it to you, right? I'd say that's something," the blond pondered as he lay back on the bed. "Your turn."

_Okay, Sasuke, just try to avoid those touchy subjects…_

"Oh, right… um, what's your favorite movie?"

"Snow White and the Seven Dwarves," Naruto replied immediately, catching his guest off guard. "My mom and I went to see it before… well, you know."

_Crap… just calm down, Sasuke. Don't dwell on the subject and move on._

"I see. Your turn, then."

"All right… did you ever have a pet?"

"I had a goldfish once, when I was five. I called him Speedy, but really he was a sluggish little guy. I think I overfed him," Sasuke replied, relieved that Naruto was still in such good spirits. "Now, as for you… oh, what's your biggest fear?"

"Being alone, I'd say," the blond murmured after a moment. "I'm sure you can understand what it's like to lose everyone like that…"

_It's all right, Sasuke. Just try changing subjects, and maybe he'll move on…_

"Yeah, I know what you mean. So… you're up, I guess."

"Oh, right. Let's see here… do you have a favorite subject in school?"

"Not really," Sasuke mumbled, his face contorting with concentration. "I'm probably best at math, but that's just because of the family business and all that. So, for you, what's your earliest memory?"

Sasuke regretted asking the question the moment it left his mouth, and he mentally cursed his stupidity.

"Hmm… that would be the time I went to the park with my mom and dad," Naruto began, placing a finger on his lip in thought. "We didn't really get a chance to go out that often, since Dad – Kyuubi, I mean – was always gone. It was probably the last time we were really happy."

With a sigh, Sasuke turned his head towards Gama on the nightstand, his thoughts drifting back to that wrinkled photo that lay within. What were they like, Naruto's parents? They looked so normal then – what happened to them? As much as Sasuke wanted to avoid such personal questions, something inside of him needed to know the whole story. He was sure he'd regret asking later, but the Uchiha decided to follow his gut on this particular issue.

"Naruto… if you don't mind me asking… about you parents that is," Sasuke began, struggling to find just the right words. "What exactly happened that night?"

"You mean with Kyuubi right?" Naruto said, his voice completely devoid of emotion. His gaze remained fixed on the ceiling, almost as if he knew that this question had been coming ever since their conversation started.

"Yeah, I want to know your side of the story. I mean, I know what happened and everything, but what do you remember about it all?"

For a moment, the blond simply sat there, letting the question sink in. Finally, after sitting up and turning towards his guest, he began to speak, though his attention was fixed on the bedspread.

"Okay, I'll tell you, but I need to back up a bit, so you can get the full story – well, at least as much as I know. From what I've been able to tell – from newspapers and talking to people back in Mizu – my parents met when they were in high school. My mom, Kushina Uzumaki, was at the top of her class and had plans to go to the University of Suna. Kyuubi was in the same grade, but never really excelled in school. From what I've heard, the only class he ever got an 'A' in was shop class, and he had no dreams of higher education.

"I don't know how it happened exactly, but apparently Kyuubi got in a fight after school one day – I guess he had a short fuse – and got beaten up pretty bad. They left him bleeding in the middle of the parking lot, and that's where my Mom found him. She brought him to the nurse's office and stayed with him for an hour or so, just talking with him. They must've really hit it off, 'cause they started dating shortly after that."

"Naruto, if you don't want to tell me this…"

"It's fine Sasuke," the blond interrupted, shaking his head briefly before resuming his story. "So, it was probably a month or two after that when things took a sudden turn for them. My mom got pregnant with me, and was basically disowned by her family. She and Kyuubi married shortly afterward, and he dropped out of school to find a job to support his family. Mom had to give up on her dreams of going to college, and stayed at home in their little flat downtown. I was born a few months later, and the three of us scraped by in that cramped apartment for some time.

"I don't really remember much about life during those first few years, but I guess they were all right. We didn't have much – Kyuubi couldn't really get a great job without a high school diploma, but my mom couldn't leave me at home all alone, and we definitely couldn't afford childcare. So, she stayed with me and we played together, and we were always happy. Even Kyuubi came home with a smile on his face, seeing that his hard work was all worth it."

"What happened, then? What went wrong?" Sasuke asked tentatively, not wishing to push his host too far.

"It must've been shortly after that picture was taken that Kyuubi's attitude started to change. I was three at the time, and I guess after that many years of working his dead end job without seeing any improvement in his life, Kyuubi began to sink into depression. It was a gradual process, I'll admit – a few nights out of the month he'd show up late at night, red-eyed and tipsy, but it wasn't anything terrible. Then he'd be flat-out drunk, and he was a mean drunk. He'd argue with my mom, about money, about me – anything he could think of, just so he could take his frustration out on her.

"Then, one day, their fight got really bad. Kyuubi was threw a bottle against the wall at one point – I remember because I started crying – and then he backhanded my mom, knocking her to the ground. She was in tears by that point, but Kyuubi wasn't done. He gave her a quick kick to the side and then stormed out of the apartment. I cried myself to sleep that night, and I was afraid he would come back."

"Did he… come back, I mean?"

"Not that night," Naruto replied, his stolid expression wavering slightly. "He didn't show up again for a week, and when he did he pretended like nothing was wrong. He was drunk, as usual, but they didn't fight that time. My mom was afraid of him, now, but she couldn't really do anything about it. She needed Kyuubi's income so that we could survive, so she just played along, pretending to forget all about her beating. He started showing up less and less then –sometimes only once every couple of weeks – and when he did he had usually spent most of our money on booze. My mom and I were living on oatmeal three meals a day, and even then they were tiny servings. Looking back, I'm surprised we didn't starve to death.

"It was right around then that Kyuubi disappeared for a whole month. We dug into what little savings we had to eat and pay the rent, but I can remember my mom crying late at night, wondering what was going to happen to us. We weren't even sure if Kyuubi was alive – for all we knew he was rotting in a gutter somewhere. Then, one night… that night… he came home…"

"Naruto…"

"Let me finish, Sasuke," the blond said, his bottom lip quivering as his eyes became misty. "Yes, that was _the_ night. As soon as I saw him walk in the door that night I knew something was wrong. He was smiling, that's what it was, but it wasn't like his old smile – no, it was far more sinister. He knew exactly what he was going to do when he came in that night.

"I guess my mom knew what he had planned, too, because she immediately picked me up and held me close, trying to protect me. From between her fingers, I could just make out Kyuubi as he approached, pulling out a knife from behind his back. My mom begged him not to do it – the top of my head was wet with her tears – but he just shook his head. She put me down then and told me to run away, but I was too afraid. I wet myself, watching as Kyuubi came down on her with that knife one, two, three times, each time spraying blood onto the floor. My mom didn't even scream, but just stared into Kyuubi's eyes with that look of betrayal."

_Why doesn't he stop? There's no reason he should have to tell me all of this…_

"Then he turned his attention to me, but I barely even noticed – my eyes were glued onto that shiny knife of his. He stooped down to my level, though, and put a hand on my shoulder, flashing me that horrible smile. 'Come, Naruto,' he said, before hoisting me over his shoulder like a bale of hay. We left that tiny apartment behind, and the whole way out I could only stare at my mom's still, bloody form on the ground.

"I'm sure you can piece together what happened next. Kyuubi dragged me to several different apartments across the city, stopping at each one to carve up another victim. He didn't care who it was he killed – women, children, anyone who got in his way – and I was forced to watch all the while. I try to block it all out, but sometimes I still hear their screams at night, begging for mercy.

"When they finally cornered Kyuubi at an apartment on the north-end of town, he grew desperate and held the knife to my throat, threatening to kill me if they didn't let him go. I still remember how warm that blade was from the blood of his victims, and I was certain that I was going to die just then. I wasn't really sure what it meant to die, but somehow I knew it was something to be afraid of. Before Kyuubi could deliver that lethal blow, though, a sniper from the roof across the street shot him in the forehead, killing him instantly. The knife fell from his hands, and he collapsed onto me, his blood flowing freely over me as the police barged in. I think I must've passed out after that, 'cause that's all I remember before I woke up in the police station."

By this point, Naruto had broken down completely, his nose running as the tears flowed down his cheeks. He tried to say something more, but his sobs were incontrollable, and it took everything he had just to breathe.

Sasuke could only stare at this miserable blond, trying to figure out just what he should do. It was all his fault that Naruto broke down like this, but what could he possibly say? 'I'm sorry?' What good would that do?

"Naruto… I had no idea…"

"It's not your fault," the blond sniffled, wiping his nose on his arm. "You wanted to know, that's all…"

"I'm so sorry… really, I am," Sasuke said, rising from the bed awkwardly. "Look, maybe I should leave…"

"No, wait!" Naruto exclaimed between sobs. "I… I don't want to be alone…"

_Sasuke, you idiot! Of course he wouldn't want to be alone after reliving the most horrible experience of his life…_

"Sure."

With that, Sasuke sat back down beside his host, allowing the blond to rest his head in his lap. There, curled up into a little ball, Naruto continued to cry for some time, while the Uchiha ran his hand through the golden locks soothingly. After an hour or so the sobs softened, and the teen's breathing steadied – he was asleep.

Sasuke admired the boy in his lap for a while – how long, he wasn't sure. At some point Kiba came back to the apartment, only to leave a while later, but Sasuke barely noticed this minor intrusion. Instead, he could only study the blond's face, gently brushing the subtle whisker-marks on his cheeks with his hand.

_How can he be so strong, after such a traumatic experience? He saw how many people get killed right before his eyes – including both of his parents – and yet he always has that smile on his face. Is it all just an act? Is he just trying to cover up this suffering? No, that would take too much effort. Could it be that he's really found happiness after all that? Is it even possible to let go of the past after something like that? Or, maybe, it's not about letting go of the past, but growing from it? Either way, he's incredible._

At this point, Naruto stirred slightly his lips parting ever so slightly. "Sasuke…"

The Uchiha couldn't help but smile at this, brushing the boy's hair once more to calm him. Hair like sunshine, that's what he'd called it. Truly, he was a ray of sunshine in Sasuke's dreary existence, as much as he hated to admit it. He was so beautiful, but it was more than just his physical appearance. He also had that inner strength, and Sasuke was only just beginning to comprehend how truly profound it was.

_Can I really be… in love with this guy?_

Seeing the blond's lips still somewhat parted, his gentle breathing slipping through the gap, Sasuke decided there was only one way to find out. He was crazy to even think about it, but he was determined to see for himself if these feelings were real. Thus, his eyes closed, Sasuke lifted Naruto's head ever so slightly and carefully planted his lips upon the blond's.

It was brief, their kiss. He only lingered for a second, barely long enough for it to even count as a kiss at all, but it was all the Uchiha needed. After that fraction of a moment, he pulled back, only to find Naruto's open eyes staring back at him. They simply stared at each other for the longest minute of Sasuke's life, neither willing to acknowledge what had just happened.

"Sasuke? Did you just…"

"No!" the Uchiha exclaimed, backing hastily off the bed and tumbling to the floor. "Look, I'm sorry, I should get going…"

"Wait, Sasuke!" Naruto shouted, chasing his guest to the door. "Just tell me if… well, did we…?"

Sasuke sighed, realizing that he had no way out of this situation. "Yes… we did, okay? Now, will you let me go and die in peace?"

With that, Sasuke tried to break free of the blond's grasp, but was quickly jerked back by a visibly frustrated Naruto. "Would you just wait a second? Listen… before you go… could we, maybe… try it again?"

"What are you talk–"

Before Sasuke could finish his thought, his words were quickly cut off by Naruto's mouth as pressed himself into another kiss with the Uchiha. For a moment, Sasuke considered pushing the vulpine boy away, but this was merely a fleeting surge of resentment, and soon he returned the kiss with equal desire. It was awkward, certainly, with neither one knowing exactly what to do with their hands, or what the other wanted to do, but the feeling was present and, really, that was all that mattered. The kiss was over far sooner than either would've liked, but Sasuke figured this was for the best. They pulled out and stared at one another, both shocked by what they had just done.

"Umm… I really should be going now," Sasuke said, his cheeks burning red.

"Yeah, sure," Naruto replied, blushing equally profusely. "See you tomorrow, maybe?"

"Sure," the Uchiha said before stepping out of the room, running a hand through his hair in disbelief.

_What have I gotten myself into?_

_---_

Well, there you have it. The first kiss - what's going to happen now that their feelings for each other are known? You'll just have to wait and see! Until next time, and remember, review!


	14. Dreaming of Glory

14. Dreaming of Glory

In a cramped apartment building in downtown Mizu, Naruto Uzumaki sat with his back against the wall, kicking at the worn carpet in a desperate attempt to escape. Outside, the rain poured down, running through the shattered window above him, while the howling winds came rushing in, sending a chill up his spine. Before him stood a blond man with a knife in hand, stepping forward as lightning flashed, illuminating the wicked grin on his face. Soon, he was looming over the teen, raising his weapon high in the air.

"Join us, Naruto."

Before the blade could fall, however, the man's eyes went suddenly dull and the knife fell to the floor. After coughing up a mouthful of blood, the murderous blond glanced down to find the bloody blade of a katana sticking through his stomach. Moments later, the man fell in a heap to the side, revealing a raven-haired teen, who quickly sheathed his weapon.

"Sasuke?" Naruto asked, wiping the tears of horror from his eyes.

"Dobe," the Uchiha replied with a warm, half-smile, extending his hand to the blond. "Let's go."

After a brief moment of hesitation, Naruto grabbed the teen's hand, only to have a loud, obnoxious ring cause the surrounding world to vanish in an instant.

xxxxx

Naruto, his face sandwiched between his pillow and his comforter, slapped his hand against the nightstand in an attempt to stop the infernal ringing. After a few attempts, his hand finally met the phone, which he pulled up to his ear groggily.

"Hello?" the blond asked, rubbing his eyes as he tried to adjust to reality.

"Naruto? It's Sasuke."

"Sasuke?" Naruto exclaimed, sitting up suddenly in bed. "W-what's up?"

"Not you, apparently," the Uchiha replied, a faint chuckle making its way through the line. "I thought I'd be safe calling you at two, but I guess I was wrong."

"Two o'clock? Is it really that late?" Naruto asked, turning towards his clock radio. Sure enough, it read 2:04. "Wow, I must've slept like a rock."

"Somehow I'm not surprised. It was an… eventful night, I guess."

Neither teen said anything for a few seconds, both thinking of the same, unspoken event. Despite the fact that they both knew what had happened, it was somehow a taboo subject, one that was secretly acknowledged, but never mentioned.

"Look, I was thinking we could meet sometime today and put the finishing touches on our project," Sasuke began, a hint of hesitation in his voice. "We can ask a few final questions, and then get a start on our papers. What do you think?"

"Oh, that sounds great," Naruto said, kicking the covers off himself. "I just need to get ready first. How does three sound?"

"Fine by me. Should I just come over there, then? Or, maybe you'd rather meet somewhere else."

"Here works," the blond responded, trying to mask his excitement. "I'll see you in a little bit, then."

"All right, later."

With a faint 'click,' their conversation ended, and Naruto set the phone back on the receiver. After swinging his legs over the side of his bed and briefly rubbing his eyes, the blond stood up and started for the bathroom, yawning slightly as he shut the bedroom door shut behind him. As soon as he had stepped inside the bathroom, he began to strip off the wrinkled clothes he had fallen asleep in, chuckling at the slight impressions they had left on his skin.

_Wow, I must've been really tired, falling asleep like that…_

Once all of his old clothes were in a little pile in the corner, Naruto hopped into the shower and jerked the handle to the left, sending water spewing from the head. As soon as the water touched his skin, the teen let out a small yelp and almost fell down as he hopped back – it was freezing. He stood with his back to the wall, letting the frigid water pound against his feet until it finally reached a tolerable temperature, at which point he grabbed the soap and began to lather up.

As the suds formed on his shoulders, Naruto's thoughts inevitably turned to the events of the previous night. He'd surprised himself by telling Sasuke about Kyuubi so easily, especially considering that they'd only known each other for a week or so. It had taken him years to finally tell Iruka all about that night, and he'd only opened up to Kiba at the start of their freshman year. He didn't regret it either, though; it had felt right, telling Sasuke about what really happened with Kyuubi. Sasuke hadn't just been asking for the project; he genuinely wanted to know about Naruto, to understand him, and that was all the reason the blond needed to reveal those darker aspects of his past.

Of course, there was more to the previous night than the tale of Kyuubi's rampage, and Naruto knew it. He had felt so vulnerable after telling that story, that he never once considered the consequences of having Sasuke stay. How had he felt, sitting there with Naruto crying himself to sleep in his lap? It must've been awkward for the Uchiha, but it wasn't like he was desperate to leave, either. No, all Naruto had to do was ask, and Sasuke caved in an instant, staying with the blond until he was asleep.

_No… it was longer than that, wasn't it? How long was he there? It must've been a while – at least an hour, probably two._

That dedication amazed Naruto, and as he washed the suds off his naked form, his thoughts finally turned to the subject he had been purposely avoiding since he awoke – the kiss. He still couldn't believe that it had actually happened. Why had Sasuke kissed him? Was it an accident? No, it certainly didn't feel like that, and Sasuke acted far too embarrassed for it to have been a misunderstanding. He had meant to kiss the blond, but he had done it with the hope that Naruto wouldn't find out.

_Is he ashamed of his feelings for me? I can understand that, I guess. I mean, he's Sasuke Uchiha – why should he have feelings for someone like me?_

But, then again, if Sasuke really felt that way about Naruto, why didn't he resist during that second kiss. Looking back on it, Naruto realized that it had been very risky, to force himself on the other boy like that. If Sasuke had been in one of his less forgiving moods, he probably would've given Naruto the beating of his life. As things stood now, the vulpine boy had gotten off the hook, and Sasuke hadn't been repulsed. In fact, he seemed to enjoy it, though he was clearly trying to mask these feelings.

And then there was that dream. It made sense, of course, that both Kyuubi and Sasuke were present, given the previous night's events, but it surprised Naruto nonetheless. Why did Sasuke kill Kyuubi? Did the Uchiha's presence really mean that much to him? That he saw him as a savior, a protector during his darkest hour? Maybe that was a stretch, but Naruto knew that it was significant. Did Sasuke feel the same way? Was that why he let Naruto kiss him like that?

_Maybe that's why he's coming today. He probably wants to explain that last night was a mistake, and that he wants to end it before it gets any worse. Who can blame him? Shikamaru said he didn't want to get close to people… I probably moved too fast. Dammit, Naruto! Why don't you think of these things before you mess up?_

Rubbing the shampoo through his golden hair, Naruto took a few deep breaths, taking in the steam to soothe his nerves. There was no point in worrying about things that he had no control over; if Sasuke wanted to end this, then that was his choice. Naruto couldn't very well do much to change his mind, as much as he tried. As they say, 'you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink.' All Naruto could do was wait and see what Sasuke had to say, if anything.

With a quick jerk, Naruto shut the water off and stepped out of the shower, grabbing a towel to dry himself off. Once his body was no longer dripping everywhere, he rubbed his hair with the towel, until it was only slightly damp. Satisfied with his appearance, he wrapped the towel around his waist, grabbed his clothes, and started for his room. There, he grabbed the first clean clothes he could find – a black shirt, khaki shorts, and some blue boxers – and hurriedly threw them on. Now that he was decent, he rushed to the kitchen and poured himself a bowl of Cheerios, pausing only to glance at the clock.

_2:50? I took way too long in the shower…_

Shoveling the cereal into his mouth, Naruto checked to make sure everything was in order for his guest's arrival. Kiba had left already for the day, it seemed – probably to work on his project, Naruto thought – and Akamaru had apparently gone with him. That was a good thing – at least he wouldn't have to worry about Kiba overhearing anything. Then again, Kiba hadn't exactly picked up before leaving – there were Playstation controllers scattered on the floor, pillows on the coffee table, and what appeared to be a thoroughly chewed shoe sitting in the middle of the floor.

Setting the now-empty bowl in the sink, Naruto rushed to the living area and tried to tidy up, organizing the pillows and blankets while kicking the shoe into the corner. It was with all of this bundled in his hands that Naruto heard the door open behind him, at which point he spun around to find a certain raven-haired teen standing in the entryway.

"Umm… hi. Did I come at a bad time?"

"No, no, you're fine. I was just trying to clean up a bit, I guess," Naruto said before shrugging his shoulders and tossing the pillows and blankets in the corner. "Come on in."

Naruto tried to busy himself while Sasuke got settled in by running into the kitchen to make some Kool-Aid. He hated himself for doing it, really – it was the kind of thing Iruka would do if he had guests – but he figured it was better than sitting around awkwardly. When he returned to the living room with the beverages, he found Sasuke already lying on the couch, a pen in hand, scribbling away at his notebook.

"So, do you have any questions left to ask me, or are we all set?" Naruto said as he set the glass down on the end table.

"I think we have enough information to get a good start, at least. We're only supposed to write a few pages, right?" Sasuke replied, glancing over the edge of his notebook as he sipped the red liquid.

"Oh, right, right."

_Okay, so he's not just here to work on the project… I knew it! He_ is_ going to call everything off, isn't he? You're such an idiot, Naruto!_

With this dismal mindset, Naruto took a seat on a beanbag chair on the other side of the room, where he could keep tabs on the Uchiha. He tried to settle his nerves, assuring himself that things would turn out fine, but a cold sweat began to form on his brow in spite of himself. Any effort he put into actually working on his paper was utterly futile, and soon he resigned himself to staring at the blank page while his panicked thought consumed him.

_Why doesn't he say anything? Why does he have to drag it on like this? If you're going to break it off, Sasuke, just do it and get it over with! But… what if he's trying to spare my feelings? Or maybe he's waiting to see how I react? I bet he's hoping that I'll say something first, so that he doesn't have to be the bad guy. Does he even remember it? Did I dream it? No, that was far too real – he has to remember what happened. But, it doesn't make sense! If he remembers it and wants to end it, then he'd say something, and if he remembers it and liked it, then he'd say something! Just… hurry up, Sasuke! I can't take it any longer!_

It was at this point that Naruto realized he had been trying to drink ice cubes for the past few minutes, a fact that embarrassed him greatly. Fortunately, it appeared that Sasuke was completely oblivious to the blond's unusual behavior, as his nose was still buried in his notebook. Deciding that it would be best not to press his luck, Naruto rose to his feet and started back towards the kitchen, shaking the cubes in his glass as he went.

"I'm gonna go get some more Kool-Aid. You want some, Sasuke?"

"W-what's that? Oh, no, I'm fine…"

Naruto eyed the Uchiha curiously as he filled his glass to the brim, trying to figure out why the other boy had sounded so distracted. Could he really be that focused on his project? It was definitely a possibility, considering that Sasuke was at the top of their class, but how could he just ignore what had happened the night before?

_That bastard… why is he playing with my feelings like this? Did that kiss mean nothing to him?_

Naruto felt his grip tightening around his glass and his eyes narrow as he started over to the couch, prepared to confront the Uchiha once and for all. Just when he was about to grab Sasuke's head and force eye contact, however, he felt his attention drift to the notebook, which forced him to a sudden halt. There, instead of seeing a great, wall of text, Naruto found only a series of squiggles, covering the entire page in a bizarre, mass of ink.

_He's not writing? What the hell's he been doing this whole time…_

As if to answer his question, Naruto's eyes drifted to the Uchiha's hand, which had an apparent death grip on the pen as it shook involuntarily. In that instant, it all made sense to the blond, and he returned to his beanbag chair without a word.

_He's… afraid. Why didn't I see it before? He's not trying to hurt me… he just doesn't know what to do. Do I really matter that much to him? That I could make him this uncertain? This… frightened? I can't just sit by and watch him worry himself to death. Maybe if I make the first move, he'll calm down a bit…_

"Sasuke, about last night…"

At the sound of Naruto's voice, the Uchiha's head snapped up, the tension evident in his eyes. "Yeah? W-what about it?"

"Well, I mean, that… kiss. Did… did you… like it, I guess?" Naruto continued, his heart throbbing in his chest.

"Yeah…" Sasuke admitted, turning his head to the side.

"A-are you… okay with it, then? Like, that we kissed?"

"I guess so…"

"Does that make us… boyfriends? Can I call you that?"

_Too much? Pull back, Naruto, pull back…_

"Sure," Sasuke conceded after a moment with a sigh, a slight smile crossing his lips. "You know, you don't have to be so timid."

"Look who's talking," the blond replied with a laugh. "You didn't exactly come right out with it yourself."

"Whatever you say," the Uchiha continued with a dismissive wave of his hand.

"Is that so?" Naruto responded, a wicked smirk on his face as he rose from his beanbag chair. "Well, maybe I'll just have to show you who's timid…"

"Naruto, what are you doing?" Sasuke asked, staring up at the grinning teen nervously.

"Shh… not another word. I want to pick up where we left off last night."

With that Naruto climbed on top of his now-boyfriend, effectively pinning him to the couch. In this position, the blond leaned forward and gently met Sasuke's lips, his eyes closed so that he could savor the moment. His lips savored the subtle taste of the other boy, who remained completely passive, allowing Naruto to explore at will. It was a gradual process, adjusting the position of his lips ever so slightly to find the most satisfying spot.

Even though he had already shared two kisses with Sasuke the night before, Naruto couldn't help but feel that something was different about this particular event. Maybe it was because he was fully awake; maybe it was because he finally knew Sasuke's feelings – either way, Naruto felt more involved with this kiss. Any slight change he felt in the Uchiha was glaringly obvious, and his heart began to pound nervously in his chest.

Was he doing everything right? Was Sasuke enjoying this? Did he want Naruto to do something else? Or maybe he should keep it slow, let Sasuke decide when to move on? Pulling back for just a moment, his lips hovering above the Uchiha's, Naruto glanced up at his boyfriend's face to find his lids closed.

"Don't…"

_Really? He's okay with that?_

With that, Naruto leaned back into the kiss, adding a bit more pressure this time. He didn't want to overwhelm the other boy, but Sasuke seemed hungry for this contact. Sucking gently on the Uchiha's lips, the blond pulled out and returned to the other boy's mouth, eliciting a slight moan.

Taking this as a sign of encouragement, Naruto decided to advance further and brushed his tongue against Sasuke's lips. He could feel his face burning at the thought of tongue wrestling with the raven-haired boy, but apparently Sasuke had a similar craving, for his lips parted almost immediately. With this, Naruto slid his tongue into his boyfriend's mouth, taking a deep breath as he let the wonderfully strange feeling sink in. Sasuke soon returned the favor, and their tongues met for the briefest moment.

Shocked by the different texture, Naruto quickly pulled back out of the kiss and wiped his lips with his wrist, causing the Uchiha to sit up angrily.

"What the hell? Why'd you stop?" Sasuke asked, wiping his own chin.

"I dunno… I just wasn't expecting that, I guess," Naruto said sheepishly. "Will you give me another chance?"

"I thought you'd never ask," the raven-haired boy said with a smirk.

Naruto returned the grin and practically tackled the Uchiha to the couch, kissing him time after time. Soon thereafter, Sasuke's lips parted, prompting the blond to follow suit, and they resumed exploring each other's mouths. It was still a very unusual sensation, but Naruto enjoyed it, that foreign feeling. Sure, simply kissing Sasuke had that enticing, forbidden quality, but this felt much more intimate, erasing any doubts the he still had about his boyfriend's feelings.

After a few seconds, Naruto pulled out and, still with his devilish smirk, he moved south a bit. There, he planted his lips just beneath Sasuke's chin, sucking slightly as he began investigating this new territory. Though Naruto left a rather obvious trail of reddened skin in his wake, Sasuke was soon moaning in spite of himself. However, it was at this very moment that the apartment door swung open, causing Naruto to snap his head up in shock. There, with Akamaru cradled in his arms, stood Kiba, who simply stared at his roommate straddling Sasuke Uchiha.

"I see… well, I'll give you guys some privacy. Congratulations, Naruto," the Inuzuka muttered, shaking his head as he backed outside.

For a few seconds, Naruto simply stared at the door, not knowing quite what to do. After this initial surprise wore off, though, he turned his attention back to the Uchiha with a grin.

"Well, shall we continue?"


	15. And After it Rains, There's a Rainbow

Well, guys, I know it's been a while, but I finally have the next chapter ready. It's quite a bit longer than the other ones, so hopefully that extra content will make up for its lateness. Also, with this chapter, this story's officially over 50,000 words long. Yay!

As usual, I thank you all for reading, and I send a special thanks to those who've reviewed. Now, on with the chapter!

* * *

15. And After It Rains, There's a Rainbow

Shikamaru Nara lay on the couch in his apartment with his head on the armrest, gazing vacantly at the softly glowing television before him. There wasn't anything good on at four in the morning, so he had resigned himself to watching the fifth straight Billy Mays infomercial of the hour. Sure, he probably had better things to do with his time – he had school in a few hours, and would need at least a few hours of sleep to make it through the day – but Shikamaru knew that, even if he tried to go to bed, he would just end up staring at the ceiling.

The reason for the Nara's insomnia was quite simple – he was expecting a call from Sasuke. Earlier that day, he'd been jerked out of his mid-afternoon nap by someone banging on his front door. He'd tried ignoring this unexpected guest, hoping that Choji would greet the pest, but he soon remembered that his roommate had left for the day. So, with a groan, Shikamaru had picked himself off the couch and ambled over to the door, where he was greeted by a smirking Kiba.

Yes, Kiba had looked quite smug, standing there with Akamaru cradled in his arms. He had been out on a walk, he said, when he decided to pay the Nara a visit, to give him a quick heads up. 'Just thought I'd tell you to expect a call from Sasuke later tonight – call it a hunch.'

With that, the Inuzuka had started back on his way, jogging alongside Akamaru down the path. Of course, this strange intrusion had presented a nice puzzle for Shikamaru, which soon absorbed his full attention. Now, having put all the pieces together, the Nara could only wait for that call to confirm his suspicions. However, as the clock continued to tick away, he began to rap his fingers on his leg anxiously.

_Damn you, Kiba… you couldn't have left me alone, could you? That would've made things too easy. Dammit! Why are you so nervous about this, Shikamaru? Just, calm down – there's nothing to be so worked up about. Just because it's your best friend doesn't mean you have to freak out._

_Think about it rationally, for a minute. Is there any other possibility? Let's go over it again: Kiba came over unexpectedly with information regarding Sasuke, meaning that something happened between him and Naruto. Given the fact that Kiba didn't call, I'd say that he must've left the apartment quickly, and only decided to talk to me as an afterthought. That means he probably saw something there, and given that stupid grin of his, it must've been something good. There's only one explanation: he walked in on the two of them kissing._

Shikamaru sighed and shut the television off, having heard enough about the wonders of Mighty Putty. It was incredibly frustrating, being left in the dark like this. Sasuke was his best friend, after all, and no amount of reasoning could possibly calm this anxiety. On the one hand, Shikamaru was almost positive that he was right – all the data pointed to a kiss – but what if he was wrong? What if something terrible had happened, and Kiba didn't even know it? Naruto might've been pushing Sasuke too far – it wasn't exactly hard to do – and Kiba could've misinterpreted it.

That lingering uncertainty was enough to drive the Nara crazy. He tried everything he could think of to shake those thoughts from his head – counting in doubles, playing a game of chess in his head – but it was useless. No matter how hard he tried, Shikamaru's thoughts always jumped to the worst possible conclusion, and soon his beloved logic was working against him.

_Why else would he be waiting this long? I mean, I know Sasuke was opposed to this from the beginning, but if he willingly kissed Naruto, then that must mean he's accepted it, right? So why the hell hasn't he called? Naruto must've forced himself on Sasuke. It's the only explanation – Sasuke feels violated, ashamed – that's why he hasn't called yet. So help me, Naruto, if you hurt him I'll… I'll…_

At that very moment in his thought process, Shikamaru heard the phone ring beside him, snapping him back to reality. He waited a moment, his hand hovering tentatively over the phone. Knowing that he would only raise suspicion if he answered immediately, the Nara waited several rings before picking the phone up with a feigned yawn.

"H-hello?" he answered, trying to sound somewhat groggy.

"Shikamaru?"

"Sasuke? Is that you? W-what's up?"

"Sorry to call you late at night like this, but there's something I have to tell you."

"What? Did something happen?" Shikamaru continued, struggling to mask his anxiety.

"Sort of… you see, I went over to Naruto's last night to work on that one project for Kakashi's class."

_Way to beat around the bush, Sasuke…_

"Okay, so? How did that go?"

"Well, that's just it. I don't know how it happened exactly – it was probably all my fault – but he ended up telling me all about Kyuubi."

There was a noticeable pause as Shikamaru let this new information sink in. Naruto told Sasuke about Kyuubi? That meant Naruto trusted him enough to share that kind of information, and since Sasuke decided to bring it up, he was clearly aware of this fact.

"I see, so… how did he react? I'd imagine that was hard for him, reliving that kind of experience."

"He tried to stay strong, but by the end he was a sobbing mess. I felt terrible."

"But you didn't force him to talk about Kyuubi, right?" Shikamaru continued, twisting the phone cord with his finger.

"N-no, of course not."

"You've never been a good liar, Sasuke," the Nara said sternly, sitting up in his seat. "What really happened?"

"Fine… before we started on our project, Naruto was showing me around the apartment, to give me some ideas for the paper. At one point he showed me this picture of his parents, and I guess it stuck with me. I tried to change the subject, but everything came back to Kyuubi. It might've been some subconscious thing, I don't know…"

_Hmm… so Sasuke wanted to know about Naruto's past, huh? He's made a lot more progress than I thought, then._

"All right, anyway, so he told you about Kyuubi and then broke down. What happened then? You didn't just leave him like that, did you?"

"I was going to, but then he started calling after me. It was so pathetic, seeing him like that, so I stayed with him for a few hours. He fell asleep on my lap."

"Ha, I never pictured you being much of a softie, Sasuke. Guess you've really warmed up to him, then, huh?"

"I guess you could say that," Sasuke continued on the other end, his voice sounding much fainter all of a sudden. "You see… when he was lying there in my lap, I didn't have much else to do, so I just watched him for a bit and… well… I kissed him."

_What? He kissed him before? Why didn't he tell me about this sooner?_

"You kissed him? Did he notice?" Shikamaru asked, furrowing his brow in thought. This most recent revelation was quite unexpected, and he was now struggling to fit it into his previous theory.

"Yeah, he woke up right away. I couldn't very well talk my way out of that, so I… I panicked and started out of the room."

"And if I know Naruto, he stopped you before you could even get to the door."

"Yeah, and then kissed me back."

_Wait, so he was kissed twice last night? Then what did Kiba see? Just calm down, Shikamaru – hear the guy out._

"I see… did you like it?"

"W-what kind of question is that?" Sasuke asked defensively.

"Come on, Sasuke, admit it – you kissed Naruto Uzumaki, and you liked it. You wouldn't have called me unless you did, and you know it."

Again, silence dominated both ends of the line, a fact that pleased Shikamaru greatly. He thoroughly enjoyed forcing his friend to answer these difficult questions, especially when it was for his own good.

"Fine – I liked it, all right? That's not why I called you, though."

Shikamaru was momentarily stunned, "Really? What else did I miss in the past twenty-four hours?"

"Well, we met again today, to talk everything over. I guess neither one of us really wanted to bring it up, but he finally mentioned the kiss. He wanted to know what it meant and… to make a long story short, we're… boyfriends."

It was clearly quite difficult for Sasuke to make that confession, and for a few seconds Shikamaru wasn't sure what he should say. This was huge for Sasuke, to acknowledge such a strong connection with Naruto, and the Nara had to be careful not to mess it all up. After all, he and Kakashi had done everything in their power to set this relationship up – it would be a shame to put all that effort to waste.

"How do you feel about that? Having Naruto as your boyfriend, I mean."

"It's… different."

"Well, that's nice and vague, isn't it? Come on, give me something to work with, Sasuke."

"I don't know how to explain it, all right?" Sasuke exclaimed on the other end of the line. "I mean, it's not like how I feel with you or Kakashi… or O even. I don't mean that you guys don't matter, because you're really the only friends I have, but Naruto… I guess that feeling's just more… intense."

"Intense? So… is it just a sense of novelty? Don't take this the wrong way, but I just want to make sure you understand your own feelings. You've only known him – _really_ known him – for about a week, right?"

"I know, I know… but I don't think it's just this shallow connection. You know, I don't even think I recognized that attraction until after I got to know him. I mean… I thought he was interesting, the way he apologized to me, even when I acted like a… like a…"

"Cold bastard?" Shikamaru offered with a chuckle.

"Yes, thank you," Sasuke continued, acknowledging his past mistakes. "He didn't really care that I was a jerk, but did what he thought was right. I guess I thought that was… noble? Is that the right word? Whatever – he was interesting, and the more I learned, the more I wanted to know."

"Hmm… it's funny – Naruto said the same thing about you the other day. He saw something about you that he identified with, and his feelings grew from there."

"See! You know what I mean, then, right?"

"Oh, I know what you mean. The question is, do _you_ know what you mean?" Shikamaru replied with his usual sagely wisdom. "Look, Sasuke, I don't expect you to figure this all out right away. You should enjoy this good thing you've found, but I want to make sure you don't get hurt. Naruto's clearly important to you, and as long as you understand this, then I'll only be happy for you."

_Maybe that was a bit too much…_

"Thank you, Shikamaru," Sasuke said after letting his friend's words sink in for a moment. "But you should know better than anyone that I've already been analyzing this to death."

"Oh, I know. You wouldn't have called me unless you had some doubts. I'm just reassuring you that it's okay to be cautious. You've been through a lot, and no one wants you to suffer another loss like that. Take your time to move forward with Naruto – he understands your feelings, I'm sure. You'll be fine."

"You're sure?"

Shikamaru couldn't help but smile, hearing that slight tremble in his friend's voice. Sasuke was always trying so hard to mask his feelings, but the Nara always found a way to make those true colors shine through eventually. Despite the Uchiha's claims to insecurity with this new relationship, the truth was quite simple: he was scared. That idea of a new bond, another emotional connection that risked being severed, was terrifying, and it was up to Shikamaru to alleviate those fears, if only slightly.

"Yes, I'm sure. Naruto's not the type to let go of something once he's grown attached to it. If anything, I'd be worried that you can't get rid of him. Now go to sleep – I'll see you later today."

"Right… that whole 'school' thing. Well, good night, Shikamaru."

"Night, Sasuke."

With a click, Shikamaru placed the phone back on the receiver and collapsed back onto the couch. For a brief moment he considered walking over to his room, but he decided that exerting that much effort would be too troublesome. Thus, lying with one foot dangling off the edge of the cushion, the lazy genius fell asleep shortly, his own anxiety having been satisfied.

xxxxxxx

When Sasuke Uchiha woke up later that morning, after a scant three hours of sleep, he felt surprisingly refreshed. Sure, he knew that he would regret staying up so late as the day went on, but for the moment he was content. Shikamaru had put his mind at ease – at least, as much as was possible given the situation.

Of course, he was still concerned about this relationship with Naruto. How he got sucked into that still escaped him, but Sasuke now knew that it would be painful to sever his ties with the blond at this point. Still, even though knew that he wanted to be close to Naruto, this fact only brought up a new set of worries.

What if Naruto lost interest and left him? What if some unforeseen circumstances broke them up? And what happened after high school? Naruto would have his own path to follow –he couldn't possibly expect them to stay together after that, could he? Then again, the same idea applied to Shikamaru – once he graduated, he'd probably leave Konoha for good.

Even in these cases, though, Sasuke knew deep down that he would be able to see his cherished friends again. Despite whatever obstacles may get in his way, the Uchiha would always be able to talk to Naruto or Shikamaru in the future – they'd be there for him, even if they couldn't physically with him.

No, what Sasuke truly feared was something more dramatic: death. What if, overnight, Naruto died in a car accident? What if he was diagnosed with some incurable disease? While Sasuke tried to shake the thought from his head, it always managed to creep back into his thoughts – what would he do if Naruto died?

It wasn't just Naruto, either. Kakashi, Shikamaru, O – they were all dangling by a thread, waiting for that blade of fate to cut their ties to this world. No matter what Sasuke did, their lives would be beyond his control. In an instant, they could meet their end, and leave the Uchiha utterly alone.

_I don't want to be alone again… not now. Not after I've started letting people back into my life. Please, don't take them away from me…_

Now that Sasuke had talked to Shikamaru, though, these fears were at least somewhat allayed. Sure, it would be incredibly painful to lose Naruto, but it would be worse to try and live without him. To try and end their relationship now, when it was just getting off the ground – Sasuke probably could've done it if he'd wanted to. He could hand a bit of emotional suffering, if it meant saving him pain in the long run. But Naruto – he'd be crushed, and Sasuke knew there was no way he could do anything to intentionally hurt that gentle soul.

_Maybe Shikamaru's right… maybe I _have_ gone soft…_

Thus, with slight smirk, Sasuke kicked the sheets off his bed and headed for the bathroom across the hall. There, he showered, tidied his raven-hair, and brushed his teeth before walking back to his bedroom with a towel wrapped around his waist. After briefly drying himself off, the Uchiha tossed the towel in the laundry hamper in the corner and walked over to his dresser. He didn't particularly care what he wore on that day, so he simply grabbed the first few articles he found – a plain black t-shirt, khaki shorts, and a pair of black boxer briefs – and started downstairs.

Unfortunately for Sasuke, his good mood came to an immediate end when he found his brother sitting at the breakfast table, dressed in his black bathrobe with the red Akatsuki cloud and munching absentmindedly on a piece of toast. Sasuke tried to slip unnoticed into the kitchen, hoping that he could avoid a conversation with Itachi if at all possible, but was spotted almost as soon as he stepped foot on the white tiles.

"Ah, there you are, dear brother," the elder Uchiha said, his eyes focused on the morning paper.

"Morning, Itachi," Sasuke said with a sigh as he pulled a box of cornflakes from the cupboard.

"Tell me, Sasuke, are you planning to come home after school today? Or were you going to visit your boyfriend?" Itachi continued before taking a swig of orange juice. "I don't care either way, but I need to know whether I should have the chef prepare dinner for two."

"I'll be home…"

"Hmm, so it's official, then? Congratulations," Itachi replied, turning finally to face his brother. Sasuke tried to look unfazed by the elder Uchiha's deduction as he poured milk over his cereal, but he knew he'd been caught. "Oh, don't look so surprised, Sasuke. I knew you had a thing for that boy – Naruto, was it? – since he first showed up last week. I was just waiting for you to figure it out yourself."

"Well, good for you."

"Don't be like that, brother. I'm happy for you, really. You should introduce me to him sometime."

"I'd rather not scare him off," Sasuke said, before shoving a spoonful of cornflakes into his mouth.

"Ah, cold as ever. Well, do what you like – just remember to use a condom, all right?"

Sasuke almost spat out a mouthful of orange juice at this last bit of advice. This did not go unnoticed by Itachi, of course, who turned back to his paper with an amused chuckle.

_Damn you, Itachi… you won this battle._

"Well, Sasuke, I'm going to go get dressed. We're leaving in five."

Sasuke gave a grunt in response as he finished off his breakfast. Even though he had learned to tolerate his brother a while ago, Itachi still managed to piss the raven-haired boy off every now and then. He was just so difficult to read – what was he _really_ thinking? Some days he couldn't care less about Sasuke, then the next he was nosing into his social life? Did he really care for Sasuke, or was it all an act?

When it came to the heart of the matter, though, Sasuke didn't really care how Itachi felt. As far as the young Uchiha was concerned, his brother had died along with his parents that night, and was replaced by this manipulative bastard of a doppelganger. Itachi had never once talked about their parents after then – it was almost as if it hadn't happened for him. Even if Itachi was just traumatized and wanted to avoid the subject, Sasuke thought it was inexcusable. It was the older brother's job to comfort and protect his siblings, not to become a callous jerk.

"Sasuke! If you're not here in ten seconds I'm leaving without you, all right?"

_Shit – you have to stop daydreaming like this, Sasuke!_

Dropping his dishes into the sink, Sasuke headed for the door, where he found Itachi, now dressed in his three-piece suit and twirling his keys on his finger. In a matter of moments, the Uchihas locked up and clambered into the silver Lamborghini and pulled out of the driveway. As usual, they drove for a few minutes before arriving at Kisame Hoshigaki's residence, where they found the bluish shark-man standing out by the edge of the road. He quickly hopped into the passenger seat, his eyes looking red and bleary in the rear-view mirror.

"Dammit… I can't _wait_ until I get my license back. I had to take a taxi back last night – the thing reeked like vomit!"

"How much did you drink, Kisame?" Itachi asked, glancing over to his coworker. "Are you sure _you_ didn't throw up?"

"Hmm… maybe that's why that cabbie was yelling at me… whatever! So how was your weekend? Any news in the Uchiha household? How about you, Sasuke?"

"Well, as a matter of fact, Sasuke and his boyfriend are official now," Itachi said, nodding his head towards his brother. "Isn't that right, Sasuke?"

"Is that so? Well, way to go, kiddo! I'm tellin' ya, you Uchihas always were smooth talkers. Like that one time when we went down to Suna on business to talk to Sasori. Did I ever tell you about that, Sasuke?"

"No," Sasuke replied as he stared out the window. There was no point in trying to dissuade Kisame once he started talking anyway, so he decided not to even try.

"Well, our boss wanted us to talk to this Sasori guy – he owned a robotic weapons business, and we wanted to talk about having him merge with our company. Anyway, this Sasori guy was being a whiny little bitch, saying that he was happy just where he was. I thought we were gonna have to go home empty handed – and our boss would've ripped us a new one if that happened – but your brother had it all under control," Kisame explained, giving Itachi a hearty pat on the back.

"Is that so?"

"Oh yeah. He just looked Sasori straight and the eye, and explained that we were giving him the opportunity of a lifetime. The way he saw it, Sasori's business would be swallowed up in a few short years unless he expanded, and the easiest way to do that was to join us at Akatsuki. We could keep his operations going in Suna, but just give his products the Akatsuki brand. I'm tellin' ya, that Sasori folded faster than… than…"

"Superman on laundry day?" Itachi interrupted, sounding as if he had helped the shark-man out in a similar manner many times before.

"Yeah, that's it! So, like I was sayin', I'm not surprised you won that new boyfriend of yours over so quickly. It's all about the charisma. Me? I got none – I'm an ugly, alcoholic jerk and I'm proud of it. But you Uchihas – you got people skills. You'll go far, kiddo."

"If you say so," Sasuke said, rolling his eyes as they pulled up to the school.

_Does he ever shut up? When did he become an expert on business, anyway? I thought Akatsuki only merged with Hoshigaki Industries because they needed a naval expert in their ranks. How does someone like him become the head of a big company, anyway? Some guys have all the luck, I guess…_

"Have a nice day at school, brother. Try not to get distracted by your boy-t –"

Sasuke slammed the car door shut before Itachi could finish his statement. Fortunately, no one had heard the elder Uchiha's taunt, and Sasuke heaved a sigh of relief before marching into the school. It was one thing to have a boyfriend – he could deal with that. It was something completely different, though, to have that news broadcast around the school. Even though he didn't particularly care what his peers thought, Sasuke simply wanted to make it through his high school career with as little difficulty as possible. The way he saw it, the longer he could avoid the drama of gossip and romance, the better.

Once he actually arrived at his first class, though, Sasuke's thoughts quickly drifted from these concerns to his studies, pushing even that grinning blond from his mind. Since Ms. Yuhi was not the kind to tolerate talking in class, the Uchiha did not even have to worry about being swarmed by his fanclub, though he could feel their eyes on him throughout the hour. All in all, though, it was a surprisingly peaceful period, and the moment the bell rang he packed up his belongings and started down the hall without a care.

Sasuke did not make it very far, however, before he heard a distinct, enthusiastic voice calling his name from behind. Spinning around on his heel, he found Naruto weaving through the crowds, waving his arm in the air in hopes of grabbing the Uchiha's attention. With an amused smirk, Sasuke leaned against a nearby locker and waited for his boyfriend. When the blond finally stumbled out of the torrent of students, he took a moment to catch his breath before looking up to the raven-haired boy with his usual grin.

"Hey, Sasuke. How's it going?"

"You came running all this way just to ask me that?" Sasuke said in disbelief.

"Well, yeah. Is that a bad thing?" Naruto asked, looking suddenly frightened.

"No, not really. You just don't have to go out of your way to do that, you know? I won't be offended if you don't come running to see me at the first opportunity. I mean… we both have our own lives, right?"

"But… what if I want to?"

Sasuke stared down at his boyfriend – not that he was that much taller than him, but Naruto was looking at his feet, making him seem so much smaller. He found it amazing, how such a simple statement could somehow carry so much meaning coming from that blond's precious lips.

"Well, if it makes you happy, then that's good enough for me," Sasuke said, scratching the back of his head awkwardly.

"Great! I'll see you later, then!"

With that, Naruto darted off down the hallway, leaving the Uchiha feeling rather stunned in his wake. Before he had time to consider the vulpine boy's unpredictable nature, however, Sasuke felt a pair of hands grab his shoulder, causing him to spin around in shock. There, he found a particular, pink-haired girl standing a few mere inches from his face, a wide grin on her face.

"Hi~ Sasuke!" she said, stepping back to give her idol room to breathe. "I'm so glad to see you here after what happened with Gaara on Saturday. I was so worried that you were hurt, or that Principal Tsunade would suspend you. I mean, it's bad enough that I don't get to see you on the weekends, not to mention vacation, but if you were expelled… I don't know what I'd do! I think I'd have to switch schools, just so I could see you again!"

"Oh, shut up, Sakura!" another girl with a blonde ponytail interrupted, shoving her pink-haired rival's face into the adjacent locker. "She's exaggerating, Sasuke. Now me, on the other hand – you have no idea how worried I was when I heard about the fight. At least Sakura got to see what happened – I only got to hear the rumors. By the time it got to me, they were saying you were in the hospital, and that Naruto had killed Gaara in revenge."

"Yeah, what was up with that, anyway? I didn't expect Naruto of all people to step in to help you. Not that I don't think you could've handled it by yourself, of course," Sakura replied, shoving Ino back into the crowd as she giggled nervously. "I mean, I knew you two were working together for Mr. Hatake's project, but I never expected _Naruto_ to fight with you."

"Wait, so you mean Naruto really did fight Gaara? Did he get hurt at all? He looked fine just now," Ino exclaimed, forcing herself back into the conversation.

"Oh, you really didn't know Ino? Well, apparently Gaara got a few cheap shots in on Sasuke, and was about to kick him while he was down, but Naruto came out of nowhere and started kicking the crap out of him," Sakura continued, punching the air for emphasis. "I swear, it was like he was a completely different person. He managed to bring Gaara to the ground, and then he gave him this big headbutt – it hurt just to watch. Yeah, they had to bring an ambulance for Gaara, and Naruto was in pretty bad shape too – all bloody and stuff – but I guess he's all right now."

"What about Gaara?" Sasuke asked, suddenly entering the conversation for the first time.

"Oh, Sasuke! What were we thinking? We completely left you out!" Ino exclaimed, putting a hand to her mouth dramatically. "Well, I'm not sure how he recovered so fast, but I just saw him in my first hour. He has bandages all over his body – he looks kinda like a mummy, really – but he's here."

"You're joking! Sasuke, you should stay low! I'll bet Gaara's gonna be looking for revenge," the pink-haired teen replied, placing a firm hand on the Uchiha's shoulder. "You should probably tell Naruto, too. I know he's just an idiot, but… well, I wouldn't want him to get hurt after he helped you out the other day."

"Yeah, Little Miss Forehead has a point. Be careful, Sasuke. None of us want to see you get hurt."

"I'll keep that in mind," Sasuke said, waving briefly to the girls as he started off for his next class.

_Gaara… I hadn't even considered that. I'll have to keep an eye on him for a while. It's one thing if he attacks me, but if he so much as lays a finger on Naruto…_

It was with this thought on his mind that Sasuke suffered through Asuma's statistics class. He tried to focus, he tried to tell himself that he was overreacting – but, naturally, his paranoia won out in the end. While Asuma wrote a wide array of numbers on the board, Sasuke could only scan the room, searching for his antagonist. Unfortunately, Gaara was nowhere to be found.

What if he and Naruto were in the same class? Would Gaara make a move so quickly? Maybe he was planning to let his cronies do his dirty work – no, that wasn't Gaara's style. This was revenge, after all; if Gaara was planning to make Naruto pay, he'd do it with his own two fists. But, then again, maybe Gaara was still too injured to fight. Naruto might be safe for now – if not, he could easily hold his own against that murderous redhead.

_What's the use in worrying anyway? There's nothing I can do about it right now. I'll just have to tell Naruto to be on the lookout for Gaara when I see him in PE…_

Fortunately for Sasuke, as he anxiously stared up at the clock, ignoring Asuma's lecture, the instructor was also eagerly anticipating the end of class. His free hand was inching towards his shirt pocket, where he kept a pack of cigarettes. Seeing as it had been several hours since his last smoke, Asuma was now having terrible cravings for some fresh nicotine, and thus was oblivious to Sasuke's daydreaming, as well as several other students who were fast asleep.

When the bell finally rang, Mr. Sarutobi was the first out the door, fumbling with his cigarettes as he ran. Sasuke followed shortly after, hurrying to the gymnasium in hopes that he could catch Naruto before class started. Upon entering the locker room and changing into his simple blue and white gym uniform, though, Sasuke realized that Naruto wasn't there.

_Calm down, Sasuke. He's probably just running a bit behind. This is Naruto, after all – he's late almost as much as Kakashi…_

However, when Maito Gai ushered all of the boys out of the locker room, saying that it was time to put their youth to use, Naruto was still nowhere to be found. He sat down on the gym's wooden floor among the other students, looking about restlessly for that particular patch of bright, yellow hair, praying that he'd somehow overlooked Naruto in the chaotic locker room.

"He's fine, Sasuke."

The Uchiha snapped his head to the side, startled by the sudden statement, to find Shikamaru sitting beside him, his eyes appearing rather red. "Don't scare me like that! But… what do you mean 'he's fine?'"

"I mean Naruto," the Nara said with a yawn. "You're worried about him running into Gaara, right?"

"Well, yeah… how did you know?"

"I've heard the rumors – it doesn't look very good. But I asked Choji to keep an eye on him between classes. He'll be fine."

"I appreciate that," Sasuke said, heaving a sigh of relief – at least Naruto was safe, for now. "Did you not sleep well last night, or something?"

"You could say that," Shikamaru replied, sliding a hand down his face. "I was expecting you to call all night."

"What? But how did you know I'd call?"

"Oh, Kiba'd stopped by earlier. He said to expect a call at some point – I figured he'd seen the two of you kissing."

Sasuke laughed, shaking his head in disbelief, "Only you could come to that conclusion so easily."

"It's a gift, and a curse. So, yeah, I got about two hours of sleep. It was worth it, though," Shikamaru continued, a tired smile crossing his features. "Now, I should get going. It looks like Choji's and Naruto are here."

Sasuke spun in his seat and, much to his relief, found the two aforementioned teens stepping out of the locker room, with Naruto scratching the back of his head sheepishly.

"S-sorry we're late…"

"Unacceptable!" Gai exclaimed, approaching the two tardy teens with his arms flailing. "You're in the springtime of youth! This is the time for you to push your bodies to the limit and experience the joys the come with such vigor! If anything, you should be early for this class everyday. Right, Lee?"

"Right, Sensei!" A boy with a moptop and thick-eyebrows exclaimed, giving an enthusiastic thumbs-up as he leapt to his feet.

"Now, you guys lead the class out to the track! I want you to use your youth to run five extra laps! Go!"

With a deafening blow of Gai's whistle, the class formed a line and "jogged" out to the track. To be honest, it was more of a sprint, but Gai's standards were quite high. In less than a minute, the entire class had convened on the track, many already winded from the short trek.

"Why are you stopping? Run! Use your youth!" Gai shouted before blowing his whistle repeatedly while waving his arm in a windmill fashion.

Sasuke did not need to be told twice, but took off running, leading the pack around the track with the morning breeze running through his raven hair. It was nice, having this chance to clear his thoughts and focus entirely on his exercising. Behind him, he could hear Naruto's laughter as he and Kiba began a little footrace, apparently oblivious to the danger he was in.

_Is he really in any danger, though? Shikamaru's having Choji watch his back – and that's more of a precaution than anything else. Maybe Gaara won't do anything… maybe he's afraid of Naruto! After all, Naruto did kick his ass quite thoroughly on Saturday._

"Hey, Sasuke! On your right!"

Glancing over his shoulder, Sasuke was suddenly forced to dodge to the side as Naruto and Kiba came sprinting past, each determined to reach the finish line first. Once he was out of danger, the Uchiha could only watch with an amused smile as the blond came to a halt, pumping his fists in the air triumphantly.

_He'll be fine… I need to stop worrying so much. Nothing can stop Naruto…_

After running a few more laps, Sasuke heard Gai blow his whistle, signaling the end of class. It was a surprise for the raven-haired boy – to him, it seemed as if class had only begun a few minutes before. Thus, it was with a sense of disappointment that the Uchiha trudged back to the locker room, arriving a few minutes before the other, exhausted students.

Once in the locker room, Sasuke walked over to his locker and began to strip off, throwing his clothing inside piece by piece. When he was completely naked, he replaced the lock on his little compartment and headed towards the showers just as some of his peers began to file in. With his bare feet slapping against the tiled floor, he crossed the room and entered the open shower area, where he picked a head against the back wall.

Throwing the handle to the left, Sasuke waited a moment for the water to warm up before stepping under the fixture, letting the now-steaming water rush over his bare form. He always liked the feel of showering-off after a workout – there was simply something satisfying about letting the sweat run off him, a reward almost for his efforts.

After soaking in the water for a few moments, the Uchiha reached for a nearby soap dispenser and took a handful of the liquid, which he proceeded to work into a lather. This he used to scrub his entire body, starting at his neck and working down, covering his arms, legs, torso, as well as his more intimate areas. It was just as he was finishing this particular area, in fact, that Sasuke suddenly heard a distinct voice approaching from behind, causing him to freeze instantly.

"I don't care what you say, I beat you fair and square!"

"I told you before, Naruto, I'm a sprinter! I can do these long-distance races, all right?"

"Oh, excuses, excuses. Just admit it, Kiba – you ate my dust."

Sasuke glanced over his suds-covered shoulder to find Naruto and Kiba entering the now-crowded shower area. Of course, the Uchiha's mind focused on one particular detail about the duo – they were naked and, more importantly, _Naruto_ was naked.

How long Sasuke stood staring at the nude blond, he wasn't sure. All he knew was that his eyes seemed to travel down Naruto's bare body at a crawl. Everything about the teen was simply beautiful: his well-defined chest, his lean arms, his flat stomach, and…

_My God… control yourself, Sasuke. Keep your eyes above the belt… or, where the belt would be…_

Sasuke couldn't help but gawk at the blond, though – he did have some impressive tackle, after all. It wasn't like it was enormous or anything – it was probably average, maybe a little bit above that – but Sasuke didn't really care about size or anything like that. It was Naruto's most intimate part, and that was all that really mattered to the Uchiha.

_Shit! I'm blushing!_

Thinking quickly, Sasuke snapped his head back to the shower, letting the water wash the remaining suds off him. Soon, however, he realized that seeing his boyfriend completely naked was having some undesired side effects. Glancing down, he found that he was growing. For now, it was barely noticeable – he simply stuck out a touch more than before. Sasuke knew, though, that if he didn't act quickly, he'd be in a very embarrassing predicament.

Shutting the water off with a quick motion, the Uchiha spun around on his heel and started out of the shower room, praying he could control his rebellious organ for a little while longer. As he passed Naruto, Sasuke suddenly wondered if the shower room had been extended by a mile in the past few minutes – it certainly felt like it, at least.

Soon, though, he made it past the running showers to the laundry bin, where he quickly grabbed a towel to wrap around his waist. He made it not a moment too soon – already he could feel himself hardening, and he did his best to conceal his awkward condition with the towel as he crossed the room to his locker.

After unlocking his little compartment with one hand, Sasuke pulled his street clothes out and set them on the wooden bench, keeping a tight grip on the towel as he did so. This accomplished, he briefly scanned the area, making sure there was no one around that might walk by and see his hardened state. Seeing that the coast was clear, he tentatively removed the towel and dried off quickly, keeping his front to the wall as a precaution. He only wiped the towel along his limbs once, and decided that it was better to get dressed while slightly damp then be dry and humiliated. Thus, he quickly snatched up his boxer briefs, along with the rest of his clothes, and threw them on at a record pace.

Now that he was finally dressed, the Uchiha collapsed on the bench and placed his face in his hands, feeling quite ashamed of himself. Even though he hadn't been caught, the fact of the matter was that he had lost control of himself – he'd been gawking at Naruto, without even thinking once of looking away.

_He's really got a hold on me, I guess…_

Rather than sit around and wait for class to end, Sasuke rose and walked towards the laundry bin to deposit his towel. It was a simple task, and he did not meet with any problems along the way. Already he could feel himself calming down – a welcomed relief, as he did not want to constantly be aware of the slightest stirring in his pants. Thus, feeling at least somewhat better, the Uchiha made his way over to the sinks just around the corner, where he began to tidy his raven-hair.

There, as he ran his hands through his locks to give them that perfect shape in the mirror, Sasuke noticed for the first time that day the slight, reddish mark on the underside of his jaw. He rubbed it briefly, out of reflex more than anything else, and thought back to the previous day's make out session.

They hadn't really kissed all that long – maybe ten minutes, five before Kiba arrived, five more afterward – but it had all been so surreal. One week – that's how long he'd know Naruto, and already he'd been making out with the blond on his couch. Maybe Kisame was right: maybe the Uchihas are just smooth operators.

_Oh, who am I kidding? If anything, I fell for him. He was the one that led the way – I might've kissed him first, but he let me know it was okay. He returned the favor, he wanted to do it again. And… even if that was all a little awkward… he cares for me. I had nothing to do with it – I was just won over by his goofy charm._

Suddenly, Sasuke heard that distinct, slapping of feet against water, causing him to snap out of his reverie. He hoped no one else had noticed him admiring that little love mark on his neck, and realized that he would have to be more careful about such things in the future.

Meanwhile, gazing into the reflection before him, the Uchiha found several of his peers walking towards the lockers, many with a towel around their waist – though some had it slung over their shoulders – with water dripping from their limbs. Among them, he noticed, was Naruto, who was rubbing the towel through his blond hair while walking alongside Kiba to his locker. As he turned down his particular row of lockers, Naruto inadvertently flashed his bare backside to Sasuke, who felt that familiar blush return in an instant.

_Dammit, Naruto! You would have a perfect ass too, wouldn't you?_

Realizing that he would have problems if he stuck around much longer, Sasuke hurried out of the locker room and sat down in the hallway outside, taking a few deep breaths to calm himself.

_I've got to talk to him about this. I'm not sure if I can do this every day…_

He waited there for a few minutes with his back up against the wall until the bell rang, at which point the hall was promptly inundated with restless students. Sasuke rose to his feet and waited for Naruto to emerge from the locker room, crossing his arms and tapping his foot impatiently. Soon, he caught sight of that bright flash of yellow and orange, and he reached out to grab his boyfriend's arm, yanking him out of line.

"Geez, what the hell, Sasuke? Are you trying to rip my arm off, or something?" Naruto asked, rubbing his shoulder indignantly.

"We need to talk, Naruto."

"Really? Why? What's up?"

"Look, I don't know how to put this exactly, so I'll just come right out and say it: I don't want everyone to know about us," Sasuke said with a sigh.

"What do you mean? Are you ashamed of me or something?" the blond replied, his eyes narrowing with his accusation.

"No, no, it's not that! It's just… I think it would be easier for both of us if we didn't let the whole world know about our relationship."

"Don't give me that! Just admit it: you don't want to be associated with someone like me. I get it!" Naruto snapped, turning around in a huff.

"Naruto, I'm serious! Don't be like this," Sasuke pleaded, running forward to cut the blond off. "Just think about it for a second: if word got out that we were seeing each other, it would only lead to all kinds of drama. I'm fine with telling our friends about it – in fact, I want them to know – but think about what Sakura and Ino would say. They'd probably devote their lives to breaking us up, hoping that they could win me over to their side, or something."

Naruto considered this for a moment, placing a hand to his chin, "All right, I guess you have a point. But, I was never really planning to announce it to the whole world, or anything. Can't we just act like normal?"

"Sure, just, no public displays of affection, okay?" Sasuke said, relieved that he'd won the blond over. "I'm hoping we can ease the others into this, so it won't come as such a shock."

"Fine, fine – I guess that wouldn't be school appropriate anyway," Naruto said with a cheeky grin. "So, what brought this up all of a sudden?"

"Well, that was the other thing I wanted to talk to you about," Sasuke said, a touch of color coming to his face. "You see… I was thinking we should coordinate our times in the showers…"

"Why? Did I do something wrong today?" Naruto began, though he stopped upon seeing the Uchiha's blush. "I get it… you were spying on me, weren't you?"

"I was not spying! I just heard you coming in, and I happened to turn and see… well, all of you…"

"Hmm… sure you did. Come on, Sasuke, you can be honest with me. You just couldn't resist sneaking a peek at me, could you?"

"That's not funny, Naruto!" the raven-haired teen replied, his blush deepening noticeably.

"Oh, yes it is! Let me guess, you got a little bit _excited_, didn't you? A little turned on seeing me naked like that? This is too good! Wait 'til I tell Kiba about this!"

"You wouldn't dare!"

"Of course not," Naruto laughed, slinging his arm around the Uchiha's shoulder. "Had you going there for a minute, didn't I?"

"That wasn't very nice," Sasuke said, trying to mask his embarrassment.

"Sorry, but I couldn't resist. In all seriousness, though – was I… I dunno… attractive?" the blond asked, scratching his cheek sheepishly.

"Well… yeah. That's why I want to make sure we have this all coordinated. I don't want to draw any unnecessary attention by… reacting… to you."

"All right, then. I'll wait by my locker and talk to Kiba until you get dressed. Deal?"

"Deal," Sasuke concluded, a relieved smile crossing his lips.

_Okay, that went well. This'll work… it won't be easy, but it'll work…_

Having finished their private conversation, the boyfriends started down the hall towards the cafeteria, where a large crowd had already gathered for lunch. There, they waited in line and grabbed that day's slop, which apparently the school board considered to be 'spaghetti.' By the time Sasuke had piled on a few more semi-edible substances, Naruto had already found a spot alongside Kiba, Shikamaru, Choji, and Lee, and was currently waving his hand frantically in the air.

"Sasuke! Over here!"

_So much for keeping things subtle…_

Heaving an irritated sigh, Sasuke started across the room, ignoring the sad puppy faces of numerous hopeful fangirls as he took a seat beside the blond. He tried to act naturally and pretend that no one else was there, but before he could even take a bite of his spaghetti, Sasuke suddenly felt the weight of several eyes resting on his skull. Glancing up, he found that the entire table was staring at him expectantly, satisfied smirks on their faces.

"Well, well… looks like you made more progress than I thought, Naruto," Kiba said, glancing over to his roommate.

"What kind of greeting is that?" Shikamaru interrupted, rolling his eyes briefly. "I think what he's trying to say is, 'welcome aboard.'"

"Yes! We are glad to have the great Sasuke Uchiha among our ranks!" Lee exclaimed, climbing on top of his seat as he pumped his fist into the air.

The next minute or so was spent trying to get Lee to calm down, a fact which Sasuke found quite embarrassing. Sure, he knew all about the moptop's antics, but to actually be the cause of one of his outbursts was somewhat unsettling. Naruto seemed to have a similar feeling, as he had a nervous grin as he sat back down.

"Look, Sasuke… we're just glad that you've decided to give us a chance. I don't want you to feel pressured into joining us, though, unless you really want to… what with all the changes and everything."

"I appreciate the concern, Naruto," the Uchiha replied, twirling the spaghetti with his fork. "But these are your friends. If they're important to you, then they're important to me, okay?"

"All right, all right already. Can we just hurry up and eat?" Choji exclaimed before digging into one of several plates of food, not waiting for the consent of his friends.

"He's got a point. We only have one lunch hour," Shikamaru concluded, taking a tentative bite of his own pasta.

With that, the rest of the table commenced eating, murmuring little bits of conversation to one another between bites. Sasuke didn't join in any of these discussions, opting instead to watch, at least for the time being.

_This isn't that big of a deal. Just because I'm sitting with them doesn't mean that I'm dependent on them all of a sudden. They're just friends… acquaintances, really… maybe somewhere in between. Either way, I can handle this._

It was shortly after this thought crossed his mind that Sasuke noticed the serious look on Shikamaru, Kiba, and Choji's faces as a shadow approached the table. To his right, Naruto was too enamored with his lunch to sense the tension around the table, and Lee was apparently clueless about the situation. Turning around, Sasuke immediately understood the source of the darkened mood, for there he found a redheaded teen wrapped in bandages, with a rather grim look on his face.

"Gaara…"

"Uzumaki," Gaara said in a level tone, completely ignoring the Uchiha.

"Hold on, asshole. If you plan to fight Naruto, you'll have to get through us first," Kiba snapped as he rose from his seat.

"Wait a second, Kiba. Let's hear what he has to say first," Naruto interrupted, holding up his hand for silence. "So, what is it, Gaara?"

"I need to know… on Saturday… why did you help Uchiha?"

No one spoke for a little while, as they were all stunned by the redhead's question. It wasn't so much the question itself, but Gaara's tone when he asked it – something about it sounded almost frightened. Sure, he was perfectly fine in asking the question – Gaara wasn't exactly the kind of person to fear consequences – but there was that slight hesitation in his voice that betrayed a hidden doubt. It was almost as if Gaara already knew the answer, and was simply afraid that it would reveal some aspect of himself that he had locked away.

"What do you mean? He needed help, so I helped him. It's as simple as that."

"No, that's not why you fought for him. If you were just trying to intervene, you would've broken up the fight. But you… you put your own life at risk. Why would you do that for anyone but yourself? Why did you treat Uchiha like he mattered that much to you?"

"Because he does matter that much to me," Naruto answered simply, staring into the redhead's emerald eyes with unwavering resolve. "Sasuke's my friend… I care about him. If I had stood by and watched you beat him to a pulp, whether or not he deserved it… I'd never be able to forgive myself. I had no choice in the matter."

"You mean… he's worth dying for?" Gaara continued, his eyes wide in disbelief.

Naruto gave no response, but simply turned back to his food, feeling as if he'd offered enough information for one conversation. Before he could take another bite, however, he heard the redhead speak once more, bringing him to an abrupt halt.

"I'd like to join you, if I could."

"What? Are you crazy?" Kiba exclaimed, pounding his fist on the table.

"Sure."

Sasuke froze. "Are you serious, Naruto? Think about what he did to you the other day."

"I know, trust me," Naruto said, rubbing one of the faint scratches on his forehead. "Look, I think he deserves a chance. If he wants to join our little circle, then why shouldn't we let him? The more the merrier, right?"

Shikamaru and the others looked to one another for a moment, each communicating their thoughts wordlessly before finally turning back to the blond.

"All right, if you're sure," Kiba concluded with a slight scowl. "But at the first sign of trouble, he's out, got it?"

"Sure, sure. Now, have a seat, Gaara," Naruto replied, patting the chair to his right.

Gaara nodded and sat down, watching the others talk for a few minutes. Kiba remained silent, watching the redhead suspiciously across the table, but the other eventually resumed their conversation. Sasuke, however, still felt a bit skeptical.

"Are you sure about this, Naruto?"

"Yes, I'm sure. What if I had decided not to talk to you again after our little fight last week? Just trust me, okay?"

Sasuke watched that pitiful, pleading look in the blond's eyes for a minute, trying hard not to give in, only to finally crumble completely. "Fine, you win."

"Are you two boyfriends?"

Naruto and Sasuke snapped their attention to their new arrival, who had apparently been watching the two with great interest.

"I-I'm sorry?" the blond replied, having been caught off guard.

"You and Uchiha. Are you boyfriends?"

"Well… yes, we are," Naruto asked, giving Sasuke an apologetic look.

"I see… how very interesting…"

Sitting back in his chair in satisfaction, the redhead flashed an ever so slight smile before standing up and starting for class just as the lunch bell ring. As Sasuke gathered his belongings and began walking out of the cafeteria, he suddenly realized that Gaara could be far more trouble than he'd anticipated.

* * *

Well, there you have it. Hope you enjoyed it, and I'll try to have the next chapter up as soon as possible. It might be a little while, though, since I have midterms coming up. Anyway, thanks for reading, and remember: review!


	16. Sharing a Park Bench Quietly

16. Sharing a Park Bench Quietly

Naruto shambled home from school that day with mixed emotions. On the one hand, he had given Sasuke a boner, which was just hilarious. Even now, as he marched up the stairs to his apartment, a cheeky grin crossed over the blond's face at the thought of his boyfriend's embarrassed blush.

_Ha, even the great Uchiha can have lustful thoughts, then…_

Of course, as amusing as that particular situation had been, Naruto couldn't help but feel a bit depressed about the ordeal later that day with Gaara. Sure, Naruto trusted the redhead, but he was apparently alone in that respect. Shikamaru, Kiba, Lee, even Sasuke – they were all suspicious.

No, suspicious wasn't a strong enough word – they were afraid. All throughout lunch, even after they'd gone back to their conversations, they kept glancing at Gaara, thinking that he'd pull out a knife and attack at any moment.

_I suppose I can't really blame them. It was only a few days ago that we got into that fight – they're probably right to suspect revenge. But I trust him – shouldn't that be enough? Can't they see that something changed in him?_

Probably not, he supposed. He wasn't even sure of it himself – well, that wasn't true. Deep down in his gut, Naruto knew that Gaara was a different person, but he still hadn't convinced his brain of that. Maybe that's why they were so nervous. If he couldn't even persuade himself, how could he possibly win over his friends?

Still, Naruto felt a sharp pang of regret as he fumbled for his keys. Even if the other guys supported him, albeit reluctantly, the vulpine boy could not shake the feeling that he'd somehow let Sasuke down.

_Wait, what am I thinking? We're boyfriends now – Sasuke should be supporting me. If I think Gaara can be trusted, then he should be on my side!_

As this thought crossed the blond's mind, he unlocked the door and push it open, only to be pounced upon by an excited Akamaru. While the white puppy eagerly licked his face, Naruto glanced up at the doorway to find Kiba glowering at him.

"Akamaru! Come!" Kiba barked, causing the puppy to run inside. Once the dog was out of sight, the Inuzuka slammed the door shut and delivered a swift kick to the blond's side.

"Ow! What the hell?" Naruto snapped, scrambling to his feet to defend himself.

"Don't give me that!" the dog-boy roared, grabbing the blond's shirt menacingly. "What the hell are you thinking, inviting Gaara into our group like that?"

"Hey, what's it matter to you? It's not like he beat the crap out of you or anything!"

"Dude, we're your friends. We don't want to see you get hurt!" Kiba sighed, releasing his roommate's shirt.

"Yeah, with friends like you, who needs enemies?" Naruto snarled, rubbing his swelling cheek.

"It got you to listen, didn't it?" the Inuzuka said with a smirk. "Look, personally, I don't care if you trust Gaara. Even if he's just trying to get close to you so he can get revenge or whatever, I'm confident you can kick his ass again."

"Then what's the big deal?"

"Aren't you forgetting something, Naruto? Who was Gaara originally fighting before you stepped in?"

Naruto's heart sank as Kiba's words sank in. "Sasuke…"

"Exactly! How do you think he feels about his boyfriend being so close to Gaara?" Kiba exclaimed, waving a hand in the air wildly as he spoke.

"Well, if Gaara tries anything funny, I'll protect him…"

"That's not the point, Naruto!" Kiba replied, shaking his head in exasperation. "Look, I'm no expert, but I think Sasuke's conflicted. He's not afraid of being attacked – he can handle his own pretty well, from what I've seen – but he is worried about _you_."

"Why should he be worried about me? In case you forgot, I'm the one that sent Gaara to the hospital."

"That's just it – Sasuke sees you as a target for revenge, and wants to do what he can to protect you. On the other hand, you trust Gaara and want to be friends with him. So Sasuke's divided – should he worry about your safety, or your feelings? Frankly, after you told Gaara all about the two of you being boyfriends, I don't see why he should care about either…"

Naruto froze, his eyes widening as he realized why Sasuke had left in such a foul mood. "Oh God, you're right. I didn't even stop to think how Sasuke felt… and here I'd promised to keep our relationship a secret just five minutes before, and then I go and blab all about it to Gaara."

"Pretty much. You were acting like a selfish prick."

"Thanks for softening the blow."

"It's what I do," Kiba replied, accompanying his wolfish grin with a wink. "Now, are you gonna stand around here all day, or are you gonna go apologize to Sasuke?"

"Oh, geez, you're right! Maybe if I hurry I can catch him at home!"

With that, Naruto took off down the stairs, his backpack bouncing up and down as he ran, leaving a satisfied Kiba in his wake.

xxxxx

_Well, I really didn't want to tell him about this – I hate it when he's right. But, who else can I turn to about this? I really don't want to tell Kakashi about this, and I can't ask Shikamaru, since Naruto's his friend too – it just wouldn't be fair._

With a sigh, Sasuke took a step towards the tall oak tree, beneath which sat a pale-skinned man with long black hair, tuning a guitar. It didn't take long for the man to notice the approaching Uchiha, at which point he set his guitar aside and faced his guest with a mysterious smile.

"Ah, Sasuke. I was wondering when I'd see you again. How may I be of assistance?" the man asked, licking his lips unconsciously.

"I just need to talk to someone, O," the raven-haired teen replied, slumping down beside his friend.

"Hmm… I take it this is about that crush of yours? What's his name… Naruto, yes?" Orochimaru mused, putting a hand to his chin in thought.

"Yes, yes – you win, all right? I couldn't get rid of him."

"Is that so? Tell me – are you sure you couldn't? Or was it that you secretly wanted him in your life?"

_Damn him… he can't just gloat in his victory – he has to rub it in as much as possible. Sadistic bastard…_

"Look, I don't know what I was thinking, all right? All I know is that we're boyfriends now, and it's brought nothing but trouble," Sasuke spat, resting his head on his hand as he looked to the snake-man.

"Oh, now you can't possibly mean that. After all, you were the one who said he was 'special,' right Sasuke?" Orochimaru replied, gently ruffling the Uchiha's hair.

"I know, I know… he _is_ special. Really, I want him in my life… I just didn't think it would be this troublesome."

"Sounds to me like you've been hanging around Shikamaru too much," O replied with a smirk. "The Sasuke I know would never get this discouraged so easily – you're a cautious guy, but once you have your mind set on something, you don't give up. So tell me, what exactly happened to get you this anxious."

_Geez, he's better than I remembered. Or am I just really easy to read? Maybe it's both – I probably stick closest to the people who know me the best…_

"Fine," Sasuke said simply, staring up at the leaves as he spoke. "The truth is, I got into a fight this weekend with this guy at school, Gaara. He was kicking my ass, but Naruto stepped in before he could do any real damage."

"Hmm… sounds like you found a keeper, Sasuke. I take it Naruto took care of this Gaara for you, then?"

"You could say that. He didn't exactly get away scot-free," Sasuke replied, shielding his eyes from the glare of the afternoon sun. "By the time they were done, Naruto was a mess, and Gaara was sent to the hospital. I think that's when I knew I couldn't do it – forget about him, that is. I'd fought with him the night before, but he didn't care. He risked life and limb to protect me."

_I probably couldn't have left him if I wanted to. That idiot's persistent…_

"So, let me guess – now you're worried that this Gaara's going to want revenge?" Orochimaru mused, taking up his guitar once more. "Am I right?"

"Partially. The truth is, we were worried about Naruto all day, since we knew Gaara would be looking for him. Later on though, at lunch, that idiot invited Gaara into our group. He wants to be friend with the bastard that tried to kill me!"

"Interesting," the snake-man said, plucking on one of the guitar strings. "Then are you irritated because Naruto didn't consider your feelings? I can't imagine you're pleased with him befriending your enemy like that."

"He trusts Gaara… that should be enough for me… but I don't buy it," Sasuke sighed, turning his head towards O. "Does he really expect me to believe that this guy turned over a new leaf in just a few days? It's crazy!"

"People do change, Sasuke," Orochimaru responded, strumming the guitar gently. "I'm not saying that Naruto's right, but there's a chance that you're wrong."

"I know… but I'm worried for him. Even if Gaara doesn't attack Naruto directly, I'm afraid he might have something else planned. Like earlier today, after he and Naruto had only talked for a few minutes, that idiot went and told him that we're boyfriends. Just like that!"

"I see – you probably feel a bit betrayed, then."

"Not really," Sasuke murmured, glancing to the side. "I mean, sure, it would've been nice if he'd asked me first, but Gaara was bound to find out eventually. My problem is that Naruto's opening up to him too quickly. What if Gaara just wants information so he can blackmail Naruto later?"

"Well, that would be a shame, then," Orochimaru stated, his voice showing no concern. "Look, Sasuke, I think you're right to be a bit cautious. This Gaara doesn't exactly sound like the most reputable character in the world. Still, I think you need to have some faith in your boyfriend. He did pick you, after all – I think that should count for something."

Sasuke felt his cheeks redden ever so slightly. It was true: Naruto _did_ choose him to be his boyfriend. Even if he'd never made a conscious decision, the blond knew that he was in love with Sasuke, and had acted upon that. Maybe Naruto was just following the same gut instinct with Gaara.

"Is that all, Sasuke?" O asked, that mysterious smile crossing his lips once more.

"Yeah, thanks," the Uchiha replied. How long had he been in that daze?

"If you ever need to talk, you know where to find me," the snake-man said, turning his attention back to his tuning. "Oh, and feel free to come by and watch us jam sometime. It'd be nice to have an audience."

"I'll do that," Sasuke said with a nod, picking himself off the grass.

With that, the Uchiha started down the cobblestone path through the park, deciding that it was best to get home before it got dark. Not that Itachi would worry or anything – but he had promised to be home for dinner.

_Well, O tried his best. Naruto believes in Gaara – maybe I just need to trust him. Doesn't mean I can't be a little cautious… but I have to believe that Naruto knows what he's doing._

"Ah, Sasuke. Fancy meeting you here."

The raven-haired teen snapped out of his reverie and glanced over his shoulder to find Kakashi sitting on a park bench, his face buried in his latest hentai novel. Sasuke wished he had ignored the man – maybe if he just kept going he'd take a hint. Before he could take another step, however, the Uchiha heard his teacher call out for him once more.

"Come on, have a seat. I haven't talked to you since you took off on Saturday," Kakashi said, a slight accusing tone in his voice.

_Well, at least I tried_.

"Oh, yeah, sorry about that," Sasuke murmured, slumping down on the bench beside the silver-haired man.

"Apology accepted. I do wish you'd at least leave a note next time. When I heard about the fight with Gaara… well, let's just say I was concerned," Kakashi said, a smile visible behind his mask.

"Look, if you don't mind, I kinda have somewhere to be," the Uchiha said, looking anxiously to the side.

"Hmm… so you have time to talk to Orochimaru, but not for me, huh?" the teacher replied as he turned the page in his book.

"So you were watching us, huh?"

"Not exactly – call it a hunch. Why else would you be here?" Kakashi chuckled, clamping the book shut. "Now that you've confirmed my theory, though…"

"It's private," Sasuke interrupted, catching the teacher off guard.

"All right, all right – no need to get testy. I just thought it might be something you could tell me."

"Nope, sorry. This is just between me and O."

Kakashi eyed the Uchiha for a minute before sitting back to stare up at the clouds. "You know how I feel about him, right?"

"Why do you care who I talk to? It's not like it affects you," Sasuke spat, glancing to the side.

"But I do care, Sasuke. The guy's always been a little… off. I don't trust him," Kakashi continued, placing a hand on the Uchiha's shoulder.

"Why should I listen to you? You're not my father, Kakashi!" Sasuke snapped, slapping the silver-haired man's hand away.

Kakashi stared at the teen for a moment, apparently speechless. Sasuke grew quite uncomfortable, seeing his cool and collected teacher in such a state of shock. Soon, however, Kakashi regained his composure and averted his eyes to the grass.

"You're right… I'm sorry. Just because I'm not your father, though, doesn't mean I can't worry about you. I'm not going to stop you from seeing Orochimaru – that's not my place. But… just be careful, all right? I don't want to see you get hurt again."

"Yeah, yeah… would you quit being all sappy now? This is just… weird," the Uchiha replied with an awkward blush.

"Fine, now you can tell me about your project," Kakashi said with a slight smirk. "Tell me, how are things working out with Naruto?"

_Damn him… he had this planned all along…_

"We're getting along, if you must know," Sasuke responded noncommittally

"I see – well that's good. I wasn't so sure after Friday night – I thought you wanted to kill him."

"No, I never wanted to kill him. I was just mad at myself, I guess…"

"So the two of you patched things up after the fight with Gaara, then?"

"You could say that," the Uchiha replied, his blush deepening as the memory of that first, awkward kiss rushed forward.

"All right, I just wanted to make sure you two patched things up," Kakashi sighed, crossing one leg lazily. "How about the paper? It's due Wednesday, you know. Are you good to go?"

_He knows exactly what's going on, I can tell – he just wants me to admit it. Yeah, nothing would please him more than for me to come right out and admit that he was right. Even though he's still a manipulative bastard, I owe him for setting this whole thing up. Still, I'm too stubborn to tell him that. I have other ways of letting him know…_

"I think I'll be good, for the most part. I do have one question, though."

"Hmm? And what's that?" Kakashi asked, glancing over at the Uchiha with one open eye.

"Well, I'm supposed to write about Naruto's life story from his point of view, right?" Sasuke started, studying his hands as he spoke. "But, well… the thing is, I know there's someone new in his life – someone important – and I'm not sure if I should talk about this person in my paper."

"Let me get this straight: you think that Naruto has met someone important recently – let's say in the past week or so – and you're not sure whether this person is significant enough to include, am I right?"

_All right, he's playing along. We both know who I'm talking about – no need to go into specifics…_

"Exactly," Sasuke replied, trying with little avail to control the color in his cheeks. "Do you think I should write about this person, or should I just leave that out?"

"Well, that all depends," Kakashi started, stroking his masked chin as he spoke. "Do you think Naruto would do the same thing for you?"

"What do you mean?"

"Let's say you found someone recently – like in the past week – who's important to you. Even though Naruto isn't sure what the future holds for you and this person, do you think he'd include it?"

"Of course he would," Sasuke chuckled, "He'd probably write about it even if I explicitly told him not to."

"Well, there you have it then. If Naruto would write about this person in your position, you might as well do the same thing," Kakashi said with his usual gentle smile. "Now, I'd better be going – I think I see that certain someone charging toward us."

Sasuke looked to his right in shock to find a certain blond sprinting down the cobblestone path, his backpack bouncing wildly with every step. Seeing this, the Uchiha suddenly realized the significance of Kakashi's words, and silently cursed the man as he began walking off in the opposite direction.

_So much for subtlety… you win this one, Kakashi…_

"Sasuke! I've been looking everywhere for you!" Naruto exclaimed as he came to a halt beside the park bench, sounding quite winded from his high-speed search.

"What for? Couldn't you just call me?" the Uchiha asked, fishing his cell phone out of his pocket.

Naruto stared at the dangling, black object for a moment, as if it were a hypnotist's pendulum. "Well… yeah, I guess…"

"Look, just sit down and catch your breath, all right?" Sasuke said, tapping the seat beside him with an amused smirk.

The blond collapsed onto the park bench, causing it to rattle slightly. Sasuke watched his boyfriend for a few seconds, waiting for him to regain his composure. How long had that idiot been running, anyway? He usually had so much stamina – if he was this exhausted, then he must've been pretty worried about something.

_Maybe I should just speak up now, before he gets a chance to interrupt me?_

Sasuke turned his head away from the teen, scratching his cheek sheepishly. "Naruto…"

"Sasuke…"

"I'm sorry."

The Uchiha's eyes widened. Had they just said the same thing in unison? Gazing to his left, he found that the blond had a similar look of disbelief, confirming his suspicions.

"You're sorry? What the hell do you have to be sorry about?" Naruto asked between a few heavy breaths.

"I could be asking you the same thing," Sasuke replied, shooting the blond a skeptical glance.

"Well, I asked first, so there," Naruto retorted, sticking his tongue out playfully.

The Uchiha's determination crumbled at that childish act – there was something utterly charming about it, and he knew it was useless to resist. "Fine, you win. Look, the thing is, I want to apologize for what happened earlier with Gaara."

"Gaara? But that wasn't your fault…"

"Yes it was," Sasuke insisted with his typical stubbornness. "The fact of the matter is, even though you told me that we could trust Gaara… I didn't believe you. Well… that isn't right – I didn't think that you were lying to me – but I was skeptical. I still am, and that's my fault. Your word should be enough for me, but it isn't."

Naruto was silent for a few seconds, mulling over Sasuke's speech in his head before arriving at a conclusion. "You're wrong, Sasuke. You shouldn't just take everything I say for granted. I mean, I want you to trust me and everything, but that doesn't mean you have to see everything the same way I do. You're a hell of a lot smarter than me… don't go dumbing yourself down just to make me happy."

Sasuke chuckled – that blond idiot did have a point. "You're probably right… maybe I'm just trying to hard to make this work. Still, I wish I could trust Gaara as much as you do…"

"Maybe you can," Naruto responded enigmatically. "I'm not saying it'll happen overnight, but if Gaara's really changed, then maybe he'll grow on you. Who knows? It's not like you have to be best friends with him or anything."

Neither teen spoke another word for several minutes, opting instead to simply enjoy the view of the park from their bench. Just over the horizon the sun was beginning to set, casting a reddish, orange hue over the landscape, while a few nearby squirrels chased each other up a tree. It was peaceful – something Sasuke hadn't felt for some time.

"Let's go for a walk," the vulpine boy suggested out of the blue, dragging his boyfriend off the bench before he could refuse.

"What the hell? Where are you taking me all of a sudden?" Sasuke asked indignantly, shocked by the blond's surge of energy.

"You'll see," Naruto responded, flashing a bright grin.

They wandered down the cobblestone path for a minute or so before coming to a stone bridge running over a small stream. Seeing this, the blond dragged Sasuke off the path and down to the waterside, stopping only when they were both tucked underneath the bridge.

"So this is your spot, huh?" Sasuke asked, sitting down on the pebbled riverbank.

"Yeah, isn't it great?" Naruto replied, jumping up to touch the bridge's underside. "Kiba and I found this place last year when we were looking for Akamaru. We were playing with him around here, and he went chasing after some squirrel. I guess he chased the little guy right into the water, and by the time we caught up to him, he was taking a drink here."

"I see," the Uchiha mumbled noncommittally.

_It is nice… but what's he planning? Something's up…_

"Speaking of Gaara… I'm sorry about what happened earlier today," Naruto said, tossing a stone into the stream.

"What about it? I already told you, it wasn't your fault."

"I know… but I didn't handle it right. Even if I do trust him, I knew that the rest of you guys wouldn't like it… especially you. I didn't even think about it – I was selfish. And then telling him about… well, us… I wasn't thinking."

"No, you weren't," Sasuke said with a slight nod, "but that's okay. He would've found out eventually."

"Really? That's it? Then… why didn't you talk to me after that?" the blond continued, chancing a look up at the Uchiha.

"Is that what this is about? I wasn't mad at you, Naruto – I was concerned. Think about it – Gaara suddenly wants to be your friend, and the first thing he asks about is whether I'm your boyfriend."

"Yeah, so what? Maybe he's just observant."

"True – but what if it's more than that? What if he's planning on blackmailing you or something?" Sasuke continued, rising to his feet as he became increasingly animated.

Naruto stared up at his boyfriend, wide-eyed. "I hadn't thought of that…"

Sasuke felt his heart sink, realizing that he'd gone a bit overboard. "I'm sorry… see? That's what I'm talking about, though. You trust him – I shouldn't have these thoughts…"

"Are you kidding? Those are exactly the types of thoughts you should be having!" Naruto exclaimed, standing up as well. "You're worried about me! I thought you were mad… but it's just the opposite! You have no reason to apologize!"

"Really?" Sasuke asked, backing up slightly from the excited blond.

"Yes! I'm the one who was wrong… I didn't even think you'd be worried about me. Kiba was right…"

_Kiba? Did he say something to start this?_

Before Sasuke could dwell on this question any longer, he suddenly felt himself falling backwards as Naruto tackled him to the ground. In a flash, the Uchiha was lying flat on his back in the stream, while his boyfriend pinned him down, grinning stupidly.

"What was that for?" Sasuke snapped, coughing up a bit of water.

"I'm rewarding you… for thinking of me," Naruto said, pressing a finger to the raven-haired teen's lips before he could utter another word. "Shh… just stay there. I'll do the rest."

With that, Naruto placed his lips to Sasuke's, sucking gently on the Uchiha's lower lip before slightly pulling away. In that brief moment that their lips were apart, Sasuke took his chance; shifting his weight to one side, he rolled over on top of the blond, effectively drenching both of them.

"What are you doing?"

"Shh… it's my turn, Naruto. I can't let you have all the fun, now, can I?"

These words spoken, Sasuke leaned to steal a kiss of his own, the cool stream water running off his hair and mingling with the blond's. His heart was throbbing as his lips met Naruto's, as he hoped that he could perform as well as his partner. When he felt returning pressure from his boyfriend, however, Sasuke began to relax, and he slid his tongue into the blond's. They met halfway, and for a few, fleeting moments they savored that weird, yet wonderful sensation.

Pulling back out of the kiss, Sasuke moved on to Naruto's neck, exploring that tender area with numerous, extended pecks. Hearing the blond moan slightly at one particular area just below the chin, the Uchiha lingered there, sucking gently on the skin. It was then that Sasuke felt something poke him down below, and, glancing up at his boyfriend, he found Naruto had turned a distinct shade of red.

"Hmm… so I'm not the only one who gets _excited_, huh?" Sasuke said with a seductive smirk.

"Shut up," Naruto replied, pulling his boyfriend into another, powerful kiss.

When they finished their make-out session a few minutes later, the sun had already set, and their soaked clothes caused them to shiver in the cool, late summer breeze. Given this unromantic atmosphere, the two clambered out from beneath the bridge and went their separate ways, but not before shooting each other one final, embarrassed glance.

_Good night, Naruto…_


	17. I Need Someone to Comfort Me

17. I Need Someone to Comfort Me

The next day – Tuesday – Gaara Subakuno sat at the lunch table along with Naruto's crew. He wasn't arrogant enough to consider himself part of their group yet – it had only been a day, after all – though he by no means felt uncomfortable sitting among their ranks. If anything, it was Sasuke and the others that were still adjusting to his presence, and Gaara wouldn't have it any other way. He didn't particularly care about any of them anyway – it was only Naruto that interested him.

In fact, as he sat there watching Sasuke talking to his boyfriend, Gaara felt an itching feeling of irritation that he was forced to fight back. Who did Uchiha think he was, anyway? He's only known Naruto for a week, and yet he already thinks he's worthy of being in his presence. Did he even realize how lucky he was to have Naruto in his life? It was disgusting.

_He'll never understand how special Naruto is… it's a travesty…_

As much as Gaara despised being around Sasuke, however, he was determined not to leave Naruto's group under any circumstances. After all, if he left, it would be impossible to make Sasuke squirm, and that would truly be a tragedy. More importantly, though, Gaara still had a great deal of research left to do.

Sitting back at the table, watching Naruto shovel cup ramen into his mouth between snippets of conversation, Gaara found he was truly amazed. It didn't make any sense – Naruto had put his life on the line to protect Uchiha but what did he have to gain by that? Did that stuck-up bastard really mean that much to him? How could he possibly feel that way, when it's clear Uchiha doesn't fully appreciate what he has?

_Could it really be as simple as… love?_

The thought truly scared Gaara, that, just because he was enamored with Sasuke, Naruto would act so… selflessly. And yet, as much as Gaara thought about it, he couldn't come up with any other explanation. Naruto had nothing to gain from intervening in that fight – Sasuke certainly hadn't asked for any help, or even wanted it – but he stepped in anyway, and took quite a beating in the process. The only reason that Gaara could think of was that, for whatever reason, Naruto thought it was worth the sacrifice to save the man he loved.

But why? Was love really that powerful? Gaara couldn't think of a single time when he'd put someone else's concerns before his own. It wasn't selfish – it was practical. What difference did it make if someone else got beaten to a pulp? Their lives had no impact on his own. In the end, his life was the only one that mattered. If he died, that was it – the end. If he needed to kill someone else to stay alive, then there was no need to question his actions. The only reason he would ever save someone was if, for whatever reason, their presence was beneficial to himself.

Was that why Naruto intervened? Was his emotional connection to Uchiha so strong that life without him would be unbearable? No, that didn't sound like Naruto. It was too… cowardly. If anything, that would be Uchiha's reasoning. No, Naruto's motives were more altruistic. He said so himself, "If I had stood by and watched you beat him to a pulp, whether or not he deserved it… I'd never be able to forgive myself." It wasn't fear… it was the desire to protect what was important to him.

_But why? It still doesn't make sense! It's so incredibly stupid, and yet… and yet… I can't stop thinking about it. I want to know more about Naruto… how he ticks, what he likes…_

Gaara stopped himself – what was he thinking? He didn't need to learn more about Naruto. That wasn't the mystery. All that mattered was figuring out _why_ he'd helped Uchiha. Nothing more, nothing less.

"You all right, Gaara? You look a bit flushed."

Gaara snapped to attention, shaking his head momentarily before focusing on Naruto, who was waving a hand before the redhead's eyes. "What? Oh, I'm fine…"

"You're sure? Maybe you should go lie down for a bit," Naruto continued with a frown of concern.

"I said I'm fine!" Gaara snapped, rubbing his cheek carefully. Itwaswarm.

"All right, all right. Suit yourself," the blond said, shrugging his shoulders as he turned back towards Sasuke. "So like I was saying, then they get to the Knights Who Say 'Ni…'"

Gaara spent the rest of the period eating his lunch in silence. How had he let himself slip up like that? It wasn't like him to let his emotions show so easily. Then again, no one else said anything – maybe Naruto was just very observant? Either way, he'd have to be careful in the future.

Suddenly, the school bell rang just above Gaara's head, signaling the end of the lunch period. Slinging his backpack over his shoulder, the redhead rose and started for the exit, along with his tablemates. After taking a few steps, however, he was drawn to a halt by a firm hand placed on his shoulder.

"Can I talk with you for a second?"

"You can talk to me all you want, but if you put your hand on me again, I'll castrate you with a rusty fork, Uchiha," Gaara replied without even looking to the speaker, brushing the offending hand from his shoulder in the process.

"Very well," Sasuke said, sticking his hands awkwardly in his pockets. "Now, tell me, what do you want from Naruto?"

"Ah, feeling threatened, are we?" Gaara responded with a slight smirk.

"No, I'm just not as naïve as Naruto is. What's your motive for becoming his friend all of a sudden? Do you really just like him, or are you planning to blackmail him or something?" Sasuke asked, his eyes narrowing dangerously.

"Of course not, Uchiha. I wouldn't _dare_ hurt Naruto. If you must know why I'm so interested… well, I suppose you could say I find him _intriguing_."

"And just what the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"Temper, temper," the redhead continued with a wag of his finger. "Relax, Uchiha – I don't plan to steal your boyfriend from you. Not yet, anyway."

"So help me if you lay so much as a finger on him…"

"I'm kidding," Gaara said, his smirk widening to a grin. It was so much fun to watch Sasuke squirm. "Really, you need to learn to take a joke. No, the reason I find Naruto so interesting is because he bothered to save a piece of trash like you, Uchiha, and I want to know why."

Sasuke's hands tightened into fists in his pockets. "Is that so?"

"Yes. I certainly wouldn't have put myself at risk like that, which brings me to my other point of interest…"

"And that would be?"

"You, of course," Gaara announced, shooting his finger outward so that it stopped just between Sasuke's eyes. "Clearly, there's something Naruto finds fascinating about you, and I'm wondering what exactly that is. He sees something that I don't… something that I can't understand the way I am right now."

"So that's all it is, huh? You just want to learn how to be human?" Sasuke replied, a smile of satisfaction crossing his features.

"Perhaps. I wouldn't say we're all that different, though. I mean, after all, would you have done the same thing for Naruto? Saving him that is?" the redhead, continued, studying the Uchiha intently. "That's what's so interesting about you. Naruto loves you, but I can't get a good reading on _you_ at all. Do you love Naruto? Or are you just afraid of being alone again?"

Sasuke was silent, and that was enough for Gaara to claim victory. "I'll let you think about that, Uchiha. You can give me an answer when you feel ready."

With that, the redhead started out of the now-vacant lunchroom, leaving his stupefied opponent in his wake.

_Yes, you think about that carefully, Uchiha… because if you answer incorrectly, I won't hesitate to step in and give Naruto the appreciation he deserves._

xxxxx

Following school that day, Sasuke's head was still spinning with thoughts from his conversation with Gaara. He'd planned on talking to Gaara all day, hoping that he could get the redhead to admit some nefarious plot, but it had completely backfired. How did Gaara seize control of the conversation so easily? It was almost a work of art, the way he completely manipulated Sasuke like that. Had Gaara always been a wizard with words? Or was he just a pro at reading the Uchiha?

Whatever the case, he'd made Sasuke look like a complete idiot, and had utterly confused him in the process. Sasuke cursed himself under his breath as he stepped out into the early September afternoon. He thought he'd had it all figured out – he'd finally found someone who mattered to him, who he had a strong, emotional connection with, and now the entire world had been pulled out from under him.

_Why do I love Naruto? I never even thought about it before. Does it matter why you love someone? Why am I even listening to Gaara, anyway? He's never loved a soul in his life… no one except himself, that is. But… I don't know why… it just bothers me._

Indeed, it was truly a dilemma. On the one hand, Sasuke knew that the fear of losing the good thing he'd found was strong – it haunted his dreams, that thought of finding everyone he cared about slaughtered once again. But, at the same time, Sasuke knew that it was more than that. If he was only concerned with loss, then he'd never be able to love ever again. That was what Kakashi, Shikamaru, and O were so afraid of – that he'd completely shut himself off from the world.

_I came close to that. I resisted all of their efforts, even though they were only doing what they thought was best for me. But they won me over in the end – Naruto's a part of my life now. I don't want to let that go, but I'd never care for him to begin with unless there was some deeper connection… right?_

As much as Sasuke tried to assure himself of this, however, he found that Gaara's words always brought about a resurgence of doubt. By this point, though, Sasuke had already made up his mind about what to do: he'd have to turn to the wisdom of Shikamaru.

Thus, rather than head towards home, Sasuke rounded the corner and started for the tennis courts. There, resting on a sizeable hill, lay Shikamaru, resting his head on his hands as he stared up at the clouds. Rather than disturb the Nara, Sasuke simply took a seat beside his friend, casting a shadow over his face.

"Thanks, the sun was getting in my eyes," Shikamaru mumbled, his eyes fixed on a cloud that resembled a deer.

"My pleasure," Sasuke said, trying to match his friend's disinterested tone. "How're the clouds today?"

"Peachy – now, are you gonna tell me what's up, or am I gonna have to drag it out of you?" the Nara asked, glancing over at the raven-haired teen with one eye.

"Let me guess – you saw the two of us talking earlier?"

"Bingo. So, what'd he tell you? Should we assign bodyguards to Naruto for a few weeks or something?"

"No, it's not really Gaara himself… it's more what he said," Sasuke confessed, sitting back on the grass. It must've been mown recently, as it still had that crisp, fresh-cut grass smell.

"Hmm… so this isn't about Naruto, then?" Shikamaru inquired, raising an eyebrow in surprise.

"Well, it is and it isn't." The Uchiha brushed the hair out of his eyes before continuing. "It's just… to make a long story short, I'm not sure if I really care for Naruto."

Shikamaru sat up, shooting his friend a temporary glare. "I thought we talked about this, Sasuke – you can't just keep severing your ties with the rest of the world."

"It's not like that! I don't want to lose him – I know that much – but does that really do Naruto any justice? Clinging to him just out of a fear of dying alone?"

The Nara considered this for a moment, now sitting cross-legged on the hillside. "I think I see what the problem is… you what matters most to you: Naruto, or that fear of losing what you have. I can't really give you a straight answer on that, Sasuke."

"But… how do I know which one's right?" Sasuke asked, his voice quavering with uncertainty.

"I don't know, Sasuke. I wish there was more I could do, really," Shikamaru murmured, his own frustration shining through. "All I can tell you is to search inside yourself. What is it about Naruto that first attracted you? And how do you feel about him now? I know that doesn't help a whole lot, but… well, think about that project the two of you are working on for Kakashi's class. What did you learn about Naruto? I think if you bothered to learn anything about him at all, then that's a pretty good sign that you genuinely care for him."

Sasuke mulled this over for a bit. What had he learned about Naruto? His favorite color was orange. He loved ramen. His dad's name was Iruka. His best friend was Kiba. And, of course, there was that whole incident with Kyuubi. That was probably the most significant thing – to know that Naruto had suffered so tremendously, but still managed to have a positive outlook on life.

_Wait. How much do I know about everyone else? I've never been to one of O's concerts – has he ever even had a concert? I don't know what's behind Kakashi's mask. And Shikamaru… have I ever even met his parents? They come every year for Parent's Weekend… why was I never there?_

"Shikamaru… I've been a terrible friend," the Uchiha concluded, his voice soft with shame and remorse.

"Whoa, where did that come from?" Shikamaru replied with a nervous laugh. "I thought we were talking about Naruto?"

"We are… it's just, I realize I've learned so much about him. Even though I'm afraid of losing him… of losing all of you… I know that he really matters to me. The thing is, I don't think I've ever shown you, O, or Kakashi the same kind of appreciation. And I'm sorry for it."

Shikamaru stared at his friend for a moment, not sure exactly what to say. Sasuke understood the Nara's confusion perfectly – a week ago, Sasuke would've simply brushed off these feelings as unnecessary. It was almost as if…

"You've changed, Sasuke," Shikamaru concluded with a soft smile.

"What do you mean?" the Uchiha stammered, feeling a bit of color rush to his cheeks.

"You know exactly what I mean. This short time you've spent with Naruto – he's grown on you already."

"I wouldn't go that far," Sasuke muttered, turning his head to the side in mock offense. "I mean, I'm still not sure how I feel about the guy."

"And that's fine. Take your time," Shikamaru said, waving a hand dismissively in the air. "We don't expect you to change overnight – in fact, I don't want you to. As much of an ass as you can be sometimes, it wouldn't be the same if you became all bright and bubbly all of a sudden. I'm just saying, _I_ can see that he's important to you. I think you just need to spend a bit more time with him so you can see it for yourself."

Was it true? Had he already changed so noticeably? It was true, he was no longer ignoring his emotions anymore. Sure, he didn't exactly embrace them either, but he actually dwelled on them, contemplated his feelings as they came up throughout the day. It was step up – however small – from the cold prick that used to condemn every living soul to hell.

Again, Sasuke's thoughts were soon interrupted by the distinct chime of Shikamaru's phone, which the Nara began searching for in his cargo pants. When he finally located the ringing object, he flipped it open and answered it with a sigh.

"Hello?"

Sasuke stared up at his friend in a mixture of confusion and horror as the Nara's face contorted into a wicked grin.

"Oh, you want to talk about Sasuke? Well, I'll tell you what – he's right here. Why don't you ask him yourself?" With that, Shikamaru tossed the phone onto Sasuke's chest with his still-prominent smirk. "It's for you."

Sasuke hesitantly picked the phone of his chest and brought it up to his ear, saying, "Hello?"

"Hey, Sasuke! It's Naruto!"

The Uchiha felt his heart sink, but only for a second, for it was soon replaced by a surge of anger. _Damn you, Shikamaru…_ "Hey, what's up?"

"All right, I'm just writing this paper for Kakashi's class – the one that's due tomorrow, remember? – and I've got most of it done. I'm just wondering, though – what do you want me to write about… well, us? Our _relationship_?"

"I don't care, Naruto. Write whatever you want – I'm pretty sure Kakashi already knows what's up anyway," Sasuke sighed, glaring at a chuckling Shikamaru.

"Sasuke! I'm serious! What do you want me to include? I mean, this is supposed to be your life story, right?" Naruto pouted on the other end, greatly reducing the Uchiha's irritation.

_I see what he saying – he wants to know how much he matters to me. Kind of an indirect way of asking, but that's Naruto for you. Geez, I wish he wouldn't put me on the spot like this though… in the grand scheme of things, how important is Naruto Uzumaki?_

_Well, let's think about this. He's not the first person I've cared about since my parents died – that would be Kakashi – but… somehow it's still a step up from where I was before. I' m not sure if it's really _love_, per se, but it's definitely a stronger feeling. I guess… he's the first person I've felt this kind of bond with in a very long time…_

"Yoo-hoo, Sasuke! You there? Do you want me to include it or not?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, Naruto. Look, here's the thing: we've only really known each other a week, right? And this paper's only supposed to be, what, three pages?"

"Yeah, three pages, double-spaced, 12-point font, etc," Naruto replied in a bored drone as he rattled off the requirements.

"Well, considering you have to talk about sixteen years in just a few pages, I think it would be best…"

"I get it, I get it – I'll leave it out, all right?"

"… if you kept our relationship to a paragraph… or two," Sasuke concluded, feeling himself blush under Shikamaru's amused gaze.

There was silence on the other end as the Uchiha's words sank in, followed by a loud exclamation the nearly destroyed Sasuke's eardrum. "SURE! Okay, great. I'll try not to embarrass you too much, okay? All right, well, thanks for the help, Sasuke! I'd better get this thing finished now. So… talk to you later, I guess. And, oh yeah, feel free to write about me too, if you want, that is. Later!"

As soon as the static-filled screeches died down on the other end of the line, Sasuke flipped the cell phone shut and tossed it back to Shikamaru, who snatched in midair before returning it to his pocket. "I take it that helped answer your question, then?" the Nara said, extending a hand to help his friend off the ground.

"Yeah, you could say that," Sasuke replied, clasping the proffered hand.

"So, what're you gonna do about Gaara, then?" Shikamaru grunted as he pulled Sasuke to his feet. "You planning on talking to him again tomorrow?"

"Please, he's not worth the effort. Let him think what he wants – I've got more important things to do."

"Really, like what?" Shikamaru asked as the two of them started down the road towards their respective homes.

"Well, for one, I'm gonna have to add a bit to my paper."

Shikamaru didn't say another word, but instead faced forward with a look of a satisfaction as the two of them walked towards the setting, afternoon sun.


	18. And Here's to You, Mr Hatake

18. And Here's to You, Mr. Hatake

Kakashi sat in the living room of his apartment the next evening, laying his head on the armrest of his red sofa. On the nearby coffee table were two stacks of papers: the taller pile had papers smothered in red ink, while the shorter pile remained untouched. In fact, this shorter stack of papers contained only two particular essays, and Kakashi had been putting them off for a few hours now.

_I just hope our plan worked. I mean, Shikamaru and I – we spent quite some time putting this all in motion. We both recognized Naruto and Sasuke's feelings for each other, and we jumped at the opportunity to play Cupid. What if it doesn't work, though? I know Sasuke was suspicious of the whole thing – maybe he was just playing along? What if we actually ruined his one chance of finding true love?_

_No, that's ridiculous. Sasuke seemed genuinely concerned for Naruto when I talked to him the other day. He wanted to know what to do about this assignment – it wasn't just an act for me. What would he have to gain by it, anyway? He'd never put that much effort into something unless there was some benefit for him. No, if I'm right, this essay should reveal his true feelings for Naruto – so why can't I just read the damn thing?_

The silver-haired teacher glanced over at the two papers, sitting neatly on the coffee table, and sighed. There was no sense in delaying any longer. It was already nine o'clock, after all, and he still had to read the next chapter in _Make Out Paradise_. Thus, with a slight groan, Kakashi stretched out his arm for the first paper and pulled it up to his face to get a better look at it.

"All right, then… here goes nothing."

xxxxx

Sasuke Uchiha

By Naruto Uzumaki

Hi! My name is Sasuke Uchiha. I was born on July 23, and I'm currently 16 years old. My favorite color is blue, and I like shio ramen. I'm really good at math, because my family is head of the Konoha based Uchiha Corporation, now part of the Akatsuki conglomerate.

_Conglomerate… what's he doing, anyway? It's like he's reading off a list… and not the kind of list Sasuke would write at all._

My best friend is Shikamaru Nara, and my other friends include local musician Orochimaru (I call him O) and my teacher, Kakashi Hatake. You'd probably think that makes me a nerd, since one of my best friends is a teacher, but he's actually been friends with my family for years.

_Okay, so he actually talked about me. I guess I'll count that as a good thing._

I'm quite popular at school. I have my own fanclub, though I don't really like it. All these girls do is follow me around and act all clingy, and it's really annoying. Oh, and I also end up stealing the girls from other guys, and they don't like that. It's not my fault that the girls think I'm a stud muffin –

_Stud muffin?_

– but they get mad at me anyway. There's this one guy in particular named Gaara Subakuno who wanted to kill me – or at least hurt me – but we're cool now. He's actually friends with one of _my_ good friends, so I'm starting to think he's not such a bad guy.

_Really? Sounds like Naruto's putting words in Sasuke's mouth. Still, I'll take it that Gaara's mellowed out a bit since that fight._

So, I should probably tell you about my life, huh? Well, like I said, my parents owned the Uchiha Corporation, so we were rich growing up. I had this big mansion – it had its own swimming pool and everything – so that was nice. I also have a big brother named Itachi – we got along pretty good growing up.

_Pretty _well_, but that's a minor detail. The tone on the other hand… it couldn't be any further from Sasuke if he tried._

Me and Itachi used to hang out – he'd help me with homework and stuff, which was cool – but then he changed. It was right around the time he turned eighteen, and he just started ignoring me. He was always busy with his studies or something, and when I'd ask him for help, he'd poke me in the head and say "Sorry, Sasuke. Maybe next time." I hated that, the way he always ignored me, like I was a burden all of a sudden.

Then he started disappearing – he'd just leave in the middle of the night and be gone all day. My mom and dad were worried about him, but he'd start yelling when they tried to talk to him about it. He said they were ruining the company, just letting it die so that their sons would be left with nothing. All that mattered to him was money and the company – his family was just a burden.

That was right before my parents died. They were murdered. Me and Itachi weren't home at the time – I was out exploring the lake, and Itachi was somewhere else. I'll bet he was partying with his friends or something.

_Oh, if only you knew…_

When I came back home, there were police cars everywhere. Mom and Dad were lying in their bedroom in a puddle of blood, and I saw Itachi kneeling over them, his whole body stained red. I never saw him cry a tear. He was so cold, while I cried into his shoulder. Like a snowman.

_I'll give him an 'A' for effort on that one, I guess._

I was never really the same after that. I lost my mom, my dad, and, in a sense, my brother, all at the same time. Kakashi tried to be there for me and Itachi, but there was only so much he could do. We were orphans, and he couldn't change that.

_Ouch, that hurts. Can't say it isn't true, though._

Ever since then, I've had a really hard time opening up to people. I kind of hate them, to tell you the truth. Not people in general – I can tolerate them – but relationships. Every time someone starts getting close to me, I try to distance myself as much as possible from them. I'm afraid that, if I get too close to someone again, it'll only be a matter of time until they're taken away from me. I don't want that to happen again.

Still, some people have managed to sneak into my life. Kakashi's been an important part of my life, of course, since he was the only person I really felt like I could talk to after my parents died. Then there was Shikamaru, who I met a few years later. He was just lying down, watching the clouds, and I realized that he wasn't the type of guy who'd bother me. I joined him, and we didn't say a word. It was nice, having someone who wouldn't pry into my life. Then he started to grow on me, and the rest is history.

Of course, there's Orochimaru, too. I heard him playing his guitar in the park one day, and I liked what I heard. I sat down and listened to him for a while, and when he was finished we started talking. Day after day I went back to hear him play, and before I knew it he was a part of my life. Go figure.

_Well, he's got a pretty full backstory there. I'm impressed._

Aside from those three, I've been pretty successful at keeping others out of my life. Some might say I've been a bit paranoid, but I'd rather be paranoid than in pain again. Still, there's someone I've met recently – very recently – who's gradually working his way into my life. He's a great guy – funny, friendly, and he has a great personality. I'm afraid of what might happen if I pursue this relationship any further but, well, somehow I think it'll be all right. Maybe the future isn't so bleak after all.

xxxxx

Kakashi stared at the completed paper, now covered with red ink, and smiled. It made him a little misty-eyed, seeing Naruto's feelings for Sasuke shining through. Even though it was by no means perfect, the teacher found himself scribbling a red "A" at the bottom of the page.

_Now, for the real test…_

Setting Naruto's paper on top of the pile, Kakashi reached over for the last essay, which he pulled up to his face once more with a sigh. It was the moment of truth – had he and Shikamaru succeeded, or was all their time and effort wasted.

xxxxx

Naruto Uzumaki

By Sasuke Uchiha

My name's Naruto Uzumaki, and I'm a monster. That's probably the first thing that'd come to your mind if you saw me, at least. When people see me, they can only think of my father, Kyuubi – the very same Kyuubi behind those famous murders in Mizu. They assume homicidal tendencies are genetic, and so they look down on me. I'm nothing but the son of that murderer. A monster.

They don't understand what I've gone through, though. If they did, they'd realize I'm much more than Kyuubi's son. I'm a human being like everyone else, and behind my big smile lies a boy with a tragic past.

_Okay, clearly not Naruto's voice. Still, it's close._

What most people don't know is that I was there the night Kyuubi went on his rampage. I was only three at the time, but I still remember that night vividly. He killed my mom in front of me – that was what started the whole thing – but then he brought me along with him as he went house to house, slaughtering anyone that got in his way. I saw so much bloodshed that night.

When Kyuubi was finally surrounded by the police, he held me hostage, threatening to kill me if the police made a move. I have no doubt in my mind he would've slit my throat right there if they hadn't killed him first. He was shot in the forehead, and I remember feeling his blood running on top of me, mingling with the blood of his victims. That haunts my dreams to this day – the feeling of his warm blood against my skin.

That's what people forget when they think of me as just the son of a murderer. They don't see that I've suffered, too. While the families of his victims had to mourn the loss of their loved ones, they at least had each other. They could rebuild, move on. Me? I had no one. Sure, the orphanage in Mizu took me in, but I was never truly welcomed. They didn't neglect me – I was given a bed to sleep in, clothes to wear, food to eat – but I could see that they looked at me different. There wasn't the warmth that they showed to the other kids. I wasn't an innocent child. I was the spawn of Kyuubi.

I didn't want to admit to the world how lonely I was, though. No one would've comforted me even if I had, so instead I pretended I didn't care. Who needed them, anyway? When the other orphans refused to play with me, I sat off to the side, alone, claiming I didn't want to play with them anyway. It was a mask of sheer indifference, and I wore it well.

That was until I met Iruka, my dad. He was the one who took me in, who saw through my mask and actually cared about me. After that, I no longer turned a cold shoulder to the world – I wanted to share my newfound happiness. In the end, it was still a mask, though – one presenting permanent glee to a cruel world. I guess I just didn't want to feel that sorrow again.

Ever since I met Iruka, though, I've started to connect with the world, to be more normal. I met my best friend Kiba in Mizu, and I've made new friends in Konoha, like Shikamaru, Choji, and Lee. I still think about Kyuubi every now and then, but I can get through it now. My friends can help lift me out of my depression.

I know I'm improving, because I've found that permanent grin cracking more frequently. I met someone in particular just a week ago, and, for some reason, I couldn't hide my true feelings from him at all. It all started with an accident – I hurt him by mistake – and I was overwhelmed with guilt. When I went to apologize to him, though, he threw it back in my face, calling me the son of a murderer, just like everyone else.

That was when the mask broke completely. I cried, in spite of my best efforts to stay strong, and that's when I knew this guy mattered to me. Something about him made me want – need – to be accepted. I wanted him to recognize me as something more than Kyuubi's son, and when he brushed me off so easily, I couldn't ignore the pain.

Apparently he had similar feelings, because he later apologized for what he said. It took us a while to admit how we felt to each other, but now we recognize how important we are to each other. I can't say for certain, but maybe, just maybe, Sasuke can help the world see beyond my bloody past.

xxxxx

Kakashi was forced to wipe his eyes with his free hand so that he could clearly see the last words of the paper. He was completely overwhelmed with relief and happiness, and so those few tears escaped and ran down his face, staining his blue mask. Again, although Sasuke's paper sounded too eloquent to have been written by Naruto, Kakashi scribbled an "A" at the bottom before adding it to the 'completed' pile.

_Even if they weren't perfect, they definitely understand each other better than any other group in the class…_

Glancing at the clock, Kakashi saw it was past ten. With a sigh, he turned out the light and started for bed. As he shut the door to his room, the silver-haired teacher remembered that he hadn't read a page of _Make Out Paradise_ that night.

_Oh well, I'll save it for tomorrow. Maybe now that I've got Sasuke and Naruto all paired up I can start working on my own love life… but again, that can wait till morning._

With that, Kakashi changed into his flannel pajama pants and climbed into bed, a faint, content smile visible through his ubiquitous mask.


	19. Dappled and Drowsy and Ready to Sleep

19. Dappled and Drowsy and Ready to Sleep

Sasuke Uchiha sat at his desk in Kakashi's class that Friday, feeling unusually anxious. It was the last class of the day, and Kakashi had announced that he would be handing back their essays at the end of the hour. This normally wouldn't have bothered the Uchiha – he never particularly cared about his grades, after all. He always did well, even when he wasn't trying, so why fret over something like getting high marks? If he got an 'A,' then great – if not, he could always do better the next time. There wasn't any academic obstacle he couldn't overcome if he put his mind to it.

Of course, this essay wasn't just another grade, though. It was a paper about Naruto – the boy he loved, for reasons he still didn't quite understand. For the first time in a while, Sasuke needed to get a good grade on this assignment – he didn't think a 'C' would cut it when dealing with something so personal. It was all or nothing, and the anticipation of getting that paper back was enough to keep him completely distracted all hour.

Sasuke rapped his fingers on the desk, staring up at the clock as the minutes ticked by. Kakashi was talking about Emily Dickinson while reading, "Hope is the Thing with Feathers" line by line. Had Sasuke been paying more attention, he might've considered the way the poem contrasted so sharply with Dickinson's usual topics of death, and possibly thought about the clash between him and Naruto – but, of course, all the Uchiha saw was that clock ticking, ticking, ticking.

"Hope is the thing with feathers  
That perches in the soul,  
And sings the tune--without the words,  
And never stops at all,

And sweetest in the gale is heard;  
And sore must be the storm  
That could abash the little bird  
That kept so many warm.

I've heard it in the chillest land,  
And on the strangest sea;  
Yet, never, in extremity,  
It asked a crumb of me."

Hearing these lines, Sasuke unconsciously turned his gaze to Naruto, who seemed to be in a similar daze, staring at his page as he drew figure 8s over and over again. Was he also worried about his paper? Did the blond spend as much time on his assignment as Sasuke did? Was Sasuke as important to Naruto as Naruto was to him?

"Sasuke? What are your thoughts on this poem?"

The Uchiha snapped his head forward to find Kakashi looming over him, his usual enigmatic smile visible through his mask. "W-what?" Sasuke said dumbly.

"The poem we were just reading, Sasuke. Why don't you share your thoughts on it with the rest of us?" Kakashi said, pointing to the page in his hand.

_Damn you, Kakashi. You know exactly what's going through my mind, and yet you're expecting me to pull some brilliant analysis out of my ass here…_

"Well, uh," Sasuke started, trying to skim the poem as he developed his thesis on the fly. "I'd say Dickinson is comparing hope to a bird, because it's a sign of life. Birds sing in the spring, when everything is coming back to life, and it sings without words because its song is universal. Hope affects everyone equally."

"Interesting, interesting," the silver-haired teacher replied, nodding his head sagely.

"And later on, when Dickinson describes the bird in the storm, it demonstrates how hope is most powerful in times of strife. When things go wrong, hope is always there to help you back on your feet. It takes something severe to "abash," the bird, because hope is strongest in those hard times."

"What do you think that sore storm is, then? That can abash hope?"

_Why won't he leave me alone?_

"Well, it would have to be something particularly traumatic, I suppose. Something that can shake you to the very core, so that you lose your faith in the world. But, like Dickinson says, you can never really destroy hope. It can only be shaken, not destroyed. It's always there, even in the harshest times, ready to help you, but never asking for anything in return."

Kakashi's hidden smile widened. "I see. Very good, Sasuke. I want you to think about that now – all of you, that is – while I hand back your papers."

Sasuke froze as the mysterious teacher began to circle the room with his stack of graded essays. Regardless of what Kakashi said, that message had been solely for the Uchiha. Why? What did Kakashi see in this poem that was so meaningful for Sasuke?

_Does he think that I've been ignoring hope all this time or something? That's too corny, even for him. I'll admit that I gave up on forming meaningful relationships with people, but that's not a loss of hope – that's a fear of loss. Unless…_

_Unless maybe my hope was shaken when my parents died. That was a traumatic experience – it changed me at the very least – but… no. That doesn't sound like Kakashi. No, I think it's something else. The bird isn't hope – it's _him_. It's Kakashi, Shikamaru, O… Naruto – all those people who stuck with me, even while I tried to brush them off. That's what he wants me to understand – that he doesn't expect anything in return for his kindness. It's enough for him just to see me happy._

It was cheesy – really cheesy – but Sasuke was sure that was the reason Kakashi decided to read that poem on that particular day. Sasuke hadn't given up hope – he'd given up his friendships. But they'd never left him – they must've felt like it was hopeless at times, but they persevered. And now Sasuke was with Naruto – it felt so strange, yet so natural and right at the same time.

_I was the sore storm – I was injured, and I tried to hurt those around me, the ones that truly cared for me. But… they never left me. I've… I've really been a terrible friend, haven't I?_

"Sasuke? Daydreaming again, are we?"

Again, the Uchiha raised his head off his desk to find Kakashi standing before him, dangling a graded essay in front of Sasuke's face. Without so much as a word, Sasuke snatched the paper out of Kakashi's hands and threw it into his backpack, pretending not to care about his grade – after all, he still had to keep up appearances, lest his fanclub discover that something was amiss. Thus, it was only after Kakashi had walked away chuckling to himself that the Uchiha dared to pull the crinkled paper from his bag, just to glance at the grade on the back page.

_An 'A.' That's a relief…_

That was all he needed to see. Although there were numerous comments in red ink left by Kakashi for him to read over, Sasuke knew those could wait for another time. Somehow, that grade washed away all of the raven-haired teen's doubt. It was almost as if Kakashi had given Sasuke his blessing with that simple 'A,' telling him that this was right. Even though it was a frightening change, having these strong feelings for Naruto, Sasuke felt that it would work out. The ocean might be fraught with storms, but there was always the hope that would see him through to happiness.

_Geez, I need to go listen to some goth rock or something – this sappiness is just too much…_

Of course, even as he thought this, Sasuke smiled despite himself. It was unlike him to feel this content, but that was okay. There was no reason the old Sasuke and the new Sasuke couldn't share the limelight, right?

"Psst! Hey, Sasuke!"

The Uchiha glanced to his right to find a grinning Naruto wielding his own paper in both hands. For a second, Sasuke was confused, until he noticed the bright, crimson 'A' on the bottom of the page. "Congratulations," he said with a smirk.

"You don't understand – I've never gotten an 'A' on a paper before. Ever. I don't think I've even gotten a 'B!'" Naruto exclaimed, pointing proudly at his grade as he spoke.

"You're exaggerating."

"Am not! Look, last year I spent a whole week writing this paper on _The Catcher in the Rye_, and I didn't even realize that I spelled Holden Caulfield's name wrong until I got it back with a big fat 'C-' on it."

Naruto scratched his cheek sheepishly, clearly feeling embarrassed by this most recent confession. Sasuke sighed – he'd never thought Naruto was lying, but he was hoping he could mess with the blond a little bit. Seeing how much this grade meant to Naruto took all the fun out of it, though – Sasuke knew he couldn't tease him any longer. "So this was your first 'A' paper, huh?"

"Yeah! And I owe it all to you, Sasuke. If it weren't for you, I never would've had the, um… _inspiration_ to write it," Naruto responded with a slight blush.

"Well, how should we celebrate it? I can take you out for ramen again if you want…"

"Ooh! Ramen!" Naruto began, rising excitedly to his feet before stopping himself and sitting back down. "I mean… I'd love to, but I had something else in mind."

The blond's lips spread, revealing a sneaky smile – Sasuke didn't like the look of it. "And what is that, exactly?"

"To tell you the truth… it's something me and the guys have been cooking up all week. I wanted to keep it a secret until today," Naruto began, covering the side of his mouth with his hand to keep out any eavesdroppers. "You see, we're gonna throw a party."

"What kind of party?" Sasuke asked, speaking in a similar whisper with his arms crossed over his chest. "If you think I'm going to some beerfest, you can forget it."

"No, nothing like that," the blond replied, leaning in even closer to the Uchiha. "It's just gonna be us – you know, me, you, Shikamaru, Kiba. Our lunch table, pretty much."

"What about Gaara?" Sasuke continued in a dark tone. He still did not particularly trust the redhead, nor did many of his new companions.

"Shoot! I forgot about him!" Naruto cursed, putting a hand to his chin. "I'll have to ask Shikamaru to invite him, or something. Anyway, we're just going to get together, play some games, watch a movie, eat some pizza – you know, the usual stuff."

"And why do we need to do this?"

"What are you talking about? We're all friends now, don't we need to hang out after school?"

"No," Sasuke mumbled, turning his head towards the blackboard. "Look, we're together now – that doesn't mean that I have to be with your friends all the time, does it?"

"But they're not just _my _friends! Everyone there cares about _us_, not just me," Naruto argued, his voice no longer a whisper. "Come on, just try it, all right? It's nothing big – we'll eat, talk, and watch a movie. That's all."

Sasuke eyed the blond momentarily. Apparently, this party was really important to Naruto – that much was obvious. He'd been planning it all week, but Sasuke wasn't sure about getting to know these new friends. It felt like all of these relationships were being piled on at once, and the Uchiha found it a bit overwhelming. Still, he knew he couldn't say no to Naruto's sad puppy face.

"Fine. When's the party?" Sasuke sighed, much to the blond's delight.

"Tonight. Now let's go!"

"Wait, wha –"

Before Sasuke could protest this sudden revelation, he was jerked to his feet and dragged out of the now-empty classroom. Somehow the raven-haired teen had been so focused on his conversation with Naruto that he hadn't even heard the bell ring – or noticed the subsequent exodus of restless students. It was hard to believe that the blond could really have that strong of an effect on him, one that was almost hypnotic, but Sasuke knew it to be the truth. He smiled.

_The thing with feathers, huh? I could get used to that…_

xxxxx

Shikamaru Nara walked down the streets of Konoha staring vacantly up at the sky, watching the clouds as they passed between the buildings. About a half hour after school had let out he'd received a call from Naruto, who begged the Nara to go and invite Gaara to the party later that night. It was troublesome, as most things were, but Shikamaru couldn't exactly refuse – as much as he distrusted Gaara, the lazy genius could see that he was somehow important to Naruto. So, there he was, walking along while repeating the redhead's address over and over in his mind – it would've taken too much effort to write it down.

_6633 Shukaku Lane, 6633 Shukaku Lane, 6633 Shukaku Lane…_

After making several turns and crossing through the busy afternoon traffic, Shikamaru came to Shukaku Lane. It was a small side street just outside the main urban center, with a few trees offering shade over the sidewalk. Had the Nara not been on a mission, he might've stopped beneath one of the little maple trees and taken a nap – it was a surprisingly quaint area, considering its one particularly bloodthirsty inhabitant.

As it turned out, 6633 Shukaku Lane was the third house on Shikamaru's right, wedged between two similar homes. It was a simple, two story house, with white vinyl siding and an, albeit small, freshly cut lawn. Shikamaru scratched his head and checked the numbers above the door, just to be sure he had the right place.

_It looks so… normal…_

Shrugging his shoulders, the Nara dragged his feet up the front door, deciding that Gaara must be the black sheep of his family. Once at the door, Shikamaru rang the bell twice and waited, sliding his hands casually into his pockets. He waited for a minute, before yawning and pulling out his phone.

_Better make sure Naruto had that address right again…_

Before the lazy genius could enter a single digit, however, he heard the door swing open, followed by a long stream of curses from a booming voice.

"Dammit, Kankuro! Next time when someone's at the fucking door, why don't you get off your lazy ass and answer it, you bastard!"

Shikamaru looked up from his cell in surprise, only to drop the phone in shock at the sight. There, standing beside the open door, was a girl in her late teens with blonde hair tied into four ponytails that inexplicably formed an X. What the Nara couldn't help but notice, though, was that she was currently clad only in a black, lacy bra and panties – and the look suited her.

"I'm sorry about that. What can I do for you, now?" the girl asked, leaning against the doorframe with her hands crossed just beneath her breasts.

_Don't just stare, Shikamaru! Say something!_

"Oh, um… is Gaara here?" the Nara asked, averting his eyes as his cheeks turned a touch red.

"Hmm.... no need to be such a prude," the girl replied with a laugh. "I take it you're one of Gaara's new friends, then? Let me guess… you're Naruto, right?"

"Shikamaru," the lazy genius replied, shifting his focus between the ground and the girl's black bra. "Has Gaara really talked about us?"

"Are you kidding? He barely talks _period_," the girl murmured, before leaning in close to the Nara. "Between you and me, I sneak peaks at his journal every now and then."

_Don't stare, don't stare, don't stare…_

"Gaara keeps a journal?" Shikamaru asked in a hushed tone.

"Well, it's a journal of sorts. Usually he writes down information about his next victim – his entries a few weeks ago were filled with stuff on Uchiha – but ever since that Naruto kid beat the crap out of him, it's starting to look more like an actual journal," the blonde explained, stepping out onto the front porch and closing the door shut behind her. Apparently she was more afraid of her brother overhearing their conversation than the whole world seeing her practically naked.

"Do you think he's plotting something?" the Nara replied, checking left and right for any passerby that might see him with this buxom beauty.

_What's with her? Is she crazy, or does she really not care what anyone thinks?_

"Not this time," the girl continued with a relieved sigh. "Usually when Gaara's planning an attack, he writes down the person's schedule, as well as his friends', family's, neighbors' – just so he can find the proper time and place to strike. He got lucky that Uchiha walked right into him last weekend, because he got to skip all of that preparation. But recently, with you guys, all the stuff he's written has been about what you like, what you dislike, who you're friends with – it's like he's trying to form connections."

"But analytically," Shikamaru concluded. He could certainly sympathize with Gaara's position. He, too, tried to approach most things logically.

"Exactly – it's a step forward, at least," the blonde continued, smiling gently at the Nara before suddenly giggling embarrassedly. "Geez, here I'm talking and I haven't even introduced myself. I'm Temari, Gaara's sister."

"Pleased to meet you," the Nara replied, shaking Temari's extended hand.

_Eye contact, eye contact…_

"Hmm… I'll bet," Temari mused, sticking the tip of her finger absentmindedly into her mouth. "Gaara's inside with our brother, Kankuro. I'll go get him for you."

"I'd appreciate it," Shikamaru said, his eyes practically glued the blonde's butt as she walked back inside.

_Cute…_

"Oh, Gaara!" Temari called in a singsong voice from somewhere inside the house. "Your little friend is here to see you!"

"Jesus, Temari! Put some clothes on before you go walking around like that!" Came another, gruffer voice – Kankuro, Shikamaru guessed. "You want the whole neighborhood to see you or something?"

"Hmm, you're just jealous that you can't have delicious curves like me, Kankuro," Temari replied, her voice growing louder as she drew near the door once more. "Now, if you'll excuse me, Shika, I have to finish getting ready for work. Gaara'll be here in just a second."

"Thanks again," Shikamaru responded, forcing himself to maintain eye contact.

"My pleasure," Temari said with a wink before heading upstairs and out of sight.

Shikamaru remained at the door for a minute or so, trying to regain his composure before Gaara arrived. For one, the Nara didn't want to let on that he knew about the redhead's journal – or the thoughts that it contained. It also didn't help that Shikamaru couldn't get the image of Temari in her underwear out of his mind. Thus, when Gaara finally did show up, the lazy genius still had a hint of a blush on his cheeks.

"What's with you?" the redhead asked, his face stolid as usual.

"What? Oh – I ran all the way over here. I guess I must look a bit flushed, huh?" Shikamaru replied, brushing a hand against his burning cheeks.

"You'd better not be having thoughts about my sister," Gaara continued, apparently seeing right through the Nara's lie.

"Me? No, no – of course not," the indolent teen insisted, waving his hands dismissively.

"I see – not good enough for you then?" the redhead asked, his eyes narrowing dangerously.

"No, it's not that – I mean, she's hot and everything –"

_Shit…_

"Hmm, so you do like her," Gaara chuckled, a smirk crossing his lips. "Well, if you plan to make a move with her, just remember that you'll have to deal with me, first."

Shikamaru stood his ground, his own eyes narrowing at the other teen's tone. "Is that supposed to be a threat or something?"

The redhead was similarly unfazed, choosing to brush off his opponent with a wave as he walked by. "You still think I'm out to get you, don't you? I pity you, in a way. Naruto trusts me – why can't you?"

"Just answer my question," the Nara persisted, unconsciously forming a fist.

"So angry – and here, I thought you were the reasonable one. All right, then. – I'm not threatening you… I'm warning you," Gaara concluded, shooting Shikamaru a dark glare. "Even if I don't particularly care for my sister, I still intend to protect her as her brother. If you really think you have a chance with her, though… well, then what's one little obstacle before love, right?"

With that, Gaara descended the steps and started down the driveway, only stopping once to look back at the bewildered Nara. "Well, are you coming?"

"But… where are you going?"

"To Naruto's party, of course. Isn't that why you're here?"

Shikamaru was dumbfounded. "You mean you knew about it?"

Gaara laughed drily. "Of course – Naruto told me about it on Wednesday. I assumed you were here to escort me to his house, or something. Was I wrong?"

_An escort? Who does this bastard think he is?_

"Whatever, let's just go," Shikamaru concluded with a sigh, sticking his hands back in his pockets as he descended the front steps. Walking alongside Gaara, the lazy genius shook his head in irritation.

_Temari, huh? And now Gaara's gonna be on my ass… how troublesome… _

xxxxx

Naruto sat on the couch in his apartment between Kiba and Sasuke, anxiously awaiting the arrival of his other guests. The clock in the kitchen read 5:00, and the vulpine boy was starting to get nervous that the others wouldn't show up. Had Shikamaru gotten lost on his way to Gaara's? Or did he have to wait for Gaara to get ready or something? And what about Choji and Lee? They should've been there by that point – what was taking them so long?

"Just calm down, Naruto. They'll be here, all right?" Kiba groaned as he stretched his arms over his head, causing Akamaru to shift in his lap. "Look, I know you want this to be perfect and everything, but you can't expect to control everything – that'll drive you insane."

"He's got a point, you know," Sasuke concurred, apparently shocked that he was actually agreeing with the Inuzuka. "You've done everything you could to prepare for this – now all you can do is relax and wait."

"You're probably right," Naruto conceded, shaking his head slightly. "It's just… well, I want you to have a good time, you know?"

"Well, if you want him to have a good time, why don't you actually do something instead of just sitting there?" Kiba interjected, indicating to Sasuke with a bob of his head. "I mean, how much fun do you think he's having here on the couch, anyway?"

_Shit! He's right!_

"I'm sorry, Sasuke! I wasn't even thinking," the blond exclaimed as he leapt to his feet. "Let's see – do you want to play some Soul Calibur or something? Or, let's see… the Simpsons are on now. Do you like the Simpsons? Or maybe you wanna help me pick out a movie for tonight…"

"It's okay, Naruto. I can wait," the Uchiha interrupted with an amused smile. "I know you've put in a lot of work for this already, so don't worry yourself any more over me."

"Here's what we'll do, Naruto," Kiba announced in an authoritative tone. "You and Sasuke sit here and watch the Simpsons or whatever – I don't care – and I'll go pick out a movie. Any objections? Well tough luck, I'm doing it anyway. Come on, Akamaru!"

The white puppy yipped excitedly and chased after his master as he walked across the room to the stack of DVDs, which he began to scan carefully. Meanwhile, Naruto remained on the couch next to his boyfriend, still feeling unusually anxious.

_Why am I acting like this? It's like I can't do anything all of a sudden. I mean, I know I want Sasuke to enjoy the party, but is that any reason to be so nervous? I'm never like this! _

"Naruto," the Uchiha murmured suddenly, as if he had read Naruto's mind. "Look, I just want you to know that… well, even if tonight's a total disaster, I won't think any less of your friends or anything."

"What do you mean?" the blond asked with a weak smile.

"That's what this is all for, right? To officially welcome me into the group, or something like that? Well, I don't want you to think that this has to be perfect, or else I'll never like your friends. Even if I end up hating the party, they'll all still matter to me because… well, they matter to you. Okay?" Sasuke asked, his voice just above a whisper, lest Kiba overhear.

"Even if that's the case, I still want you to have a good time," Naruto said stubbornly, almost as if he were pouting.

"Good – it's not like I want to have a miserable evening myself."

"But –"

Before Naruto could offer any more words of protest, Sasuke quickly pressed his lips against the blond's, stifling the sounds immediately. It was only a short kiss – a few seconds of sweet pressure, and no more – but it was enough for Naruto to get the message. Whatever happened, Sasuke still loved him, and that was all that mattered. The rest would work itself out in time.

"There," the Uchiha whispered as he pulled out of the kiss. "Now, try to relax, okay? This is supposed to be a party, right?"

Naruto only nodded in response, a bit caught off guard by how much concern Sasuke was showing all of a sudden. He had seemed so reluctant to even come to the party in class, but now here he was, kissing Naruto with Kiba just a few feet away, and for what? To calm him down so that _he_ could enjoy that party.

_Was I really that obvious? Could they tell I was that nervous just by looking at me? No – anybody else would've missed it. I was talking with them – laughing, telling stories, just like any other day – but they know me too well. They could see that I was checking the clock, that I was missing punch lines because I was distracted, and not just because I didn't get them. This is why it's good to have friends, I guess – so they can help you with your problems, even when you don't say a word about them._

"Thanks, Sasuke," the blond said finally as the Uchiha switched the television on.

"Don't mention it," Sasuke replied, lying back in his seat. "But if you start moping again, me and Kiba are gonna _make_ you have fun, all right?"

"I'll keep that in mind," Naruto said, laughing at his boyfriend's dubious threat.

Moments later, a completely oblivious Kiba rose to his feet in triumph, holding his selected movie high in the air. "All right! After going through every single movie in our combined collection _in_ alphabetical order, I, Kiba Inuzuka – VJ extraordinaire – have selected… drum roll please… _Zoolander_."

With that, the dog-boy tossed the DVD case over to the couch, where it landed neatly in Naruto's open hands. "Don't you think this movie's a bit too… silly for, let's say, Gaara? Or Sasuke?"

"I'm fine with it," the Uchiha replied, gently smacking the blond in the back of the head. "And what did I tell you about being so anal? You can't please everyone, Naruto – especially Gaara. I doubt he's ever seen a movie he's actually enjoyed."

"He's right, you know," Kiba added, collapsing on the couch once more. "I'm not sure if you noticed, but that Gaara's kind of a prick, even more than Uchiha – no offense, of course."

"None taken."

"Besides, by the time we actually sit down to watch the movie, everyone's going to be drunk on pizza and caffeine, they'll think anything's the greatest movie ever," the Inuzuka continued, gently nudging his housemate with his elbow. "As long as you laugh loud enough, everyone else should join in."

"By the way… did you guys already order pizza and everything? Do we need to run out and grab beverages or anything like that?" Sasuke chimed in, most likely trying to change the subject.

"We're going to order the pizza once everyone gets here. Choji and Lee are supposed to bring extra drinks for everyone – we should be fine," Naruto replied, tapping a finger against his lips in thought.

Just then, there was a knock at the door, which sent Naruto flying out of his seat in a combination of anxiety, excitement, and relief. "Speak of the devil…"

Darting to the door, the blond nearly tripped over Akamaru, who ran yelping back to his master's lap on the couch. After stumbling into the wall, though, Naruto managed to recover and swing open the door, where he found Lee and Choji standing with several 2-liters cradled in their arms.

"Hey, guys! You made it! Come in, come in – you can set the drinks down in the kitchen. Here, let me take a couple," Naruto said hurriedly as he ushered his guests inside.

"No, Naruto! Let me take the drinks! I told Choji that if I couldn't carry eight two liters over here, then I would have to run fifty laps around the park tomorrow," Lee exclaimed, pumping one fist into the air and inadvertently dropping several bottles in the process. "Oh, no! I've failed! I'll make it one hundred laps!"

"It's okay, Lee – your goal was the apartment, and you dropped them inside. You're fine," Choji said, giving Lee a hearty smack on the back. "Of course, we'll have to remember not to open those for an hour or so – wouldn't want them to spray anywhere, right? That would be a disgraceful waste."

Lee considered this for a moment, as he gathered up the scattered two liters. "Well, you have a point, I guess – I did make it to the apartment. Still, I feel like I failed somehow, after you challenged me like that."

"But you made up that challenge yourself…"

"I know!" the energetic teen exclaimed, his bowl-cut swishing as he spun to face Naruto. "Why don't you come up with a tie-breaker challenge, Naruto! If I lose, I have to do whatever punishment Choji decides, but if I win, he has to join me for one hundred laps in the park tomorrow!"

_So, either way, Lee's going to run laps, huh? Figures…_

"All right – rock, paper, scissors. Easy enough, right?" Naruto offered, patting each of the combatants on the shoulder.

"Fine, by me," Choji groaned as he cracked his knuckles. "And if I win, let's just say you have to do twenty pushups or something."

"One hundred – but I don't plan on losing," Lee boasted as he formed a fist.

Naruto rolled his eyes. It was pretty obvious who was going to win this match, and he had trouble keeping a straight face as he counted down. "Okay – rock, paper, scissors… shoot!"

On his word, both Choji and Lee shot their hands forward with their respective choices – Choji's was flat like a pancake, while Lee's remained in a tight fist. "Paper covers rock – victory goes to Choji," Naruto announced, raising the plump teen's arm like a boxing champion.

"But… but how? How did you know what I was going to pick?" Lee exclaimed, staring at his fist in disbelief.

"Everyone knew you were going to pick rock," Kiba replied from the couch, with Akamaru barking once in agreement.

"Yeah – _Rock_ Lee," Sasuke continued with a smirk. "I don't think I've ever seen your hand form anything _but_ a fist."

"What? No way! Am I really that obvious?"

"Yes, you are," Naruto laughed, gently punching Lee in the shoulder. "But that's what we like about you. Now, hurry up and give us our pushups. We'll wait."

Lee gave a single, vigorous nod before dropping to the floor, where he began to pump his arms up and down like pistons. It was truly amazing to see him go faster and faster, until he was practically a green blur on the carpet, his voice rapidly counting off each pushup.

"One-two-three-four-five-sixseveneightnineten…"

This continued for a minute or so, until Lee had reached pushup number fifty a few drops of sweat forming on his brow, when suddenly the door swung open once again. While the thick eyebrowed teen continued his pushups with fierce determination, Naruto and the others turned to find Shikamaru and Gaara standing in the doorway. As they both stepped inside the apartment, neither of the new arrivals could help but stare at the strange sight of Lee furiously exercising in the middle of the room.

"Should we ask?" Shikamaru asked as he sealed the door shut behind him.

"He lost a bet," Naruto explained simply, hoping it would suffice.

"So you made him do pushups? I thought the idea was to make him do something he'd hate," Shikamaru mused, as he tiptoed around Lee.

"Well, do you have a better idea, then?" Kiba asked, raising an eyebrow at the Nara. "Or is it _too troublesome_?"

"Exactly," Shikamaru replied, slumping down on the floor beside the couch.

"ONE HUNDRED!" Lee exclaimed, causing everyone except Gaara to jump ever so slightly. With that, the energetic teen leaped to his feet, raising a hand triumphantly in the air. "I have an idea! Let us have a series of contests, where the winner gets to provide a punishment for the loser! It'll be a fine activity to exercise our youth!"

_There he goes with the 'youth' thing, again. Sometimes I wish he wouldn't hang around with Gai so much – it's a little creepy, really._

"Hmm… I dunno. What do the rest of you think?" Naruto asked, staring directly at Sasuke in hopes he'd take a hint.

"Sounds fun to me," Kiba said, rubbing his hands together eagerly.

"Why not? As long as we get food."

"Whatever – if Choji's okay with it, I don't mind," Shikamaru said with a shrug.

"This could be interesting, I guess," Gaara concurred from his position by the door. He seemed to be observing the others from a distance.

They all waited for a second, realizing that there was one vote missing. Naruto's eyes were still fixed on Sasuke, who was glancing back and forth, as if suddenly aware that the whole room was staring at him.

"Well, Sasuke? What do you say?" the blond asked in a hopeful tone.

_Maybe this'll be a good way to get everyone to interact with each other. Especially Sasuke…_

The Uchiha considered the proposal for a second, running a hand through his raven locks before coming to a conclusion. "All right – I guess that's fine. Let's order the pizza first, though, before we forget."

"Great! You've got a good point, though – if we want the pizzas to be here by six or so, we'll have to order now. So… what does everyone want?" Naruto asked, as he walked over to the kitchen to grab a pen and some paper.

"Sausage!"

"Pepperoni!"

"I don't care…"

"Oh! Oh! How about sausage, olives, mushrooms, pepperoni, pineapple…"

"Calm down, Choji – somebody has to pay for all that, remember…"

"Cheese?"

"All right, all right – everyone shut up for a sec, okay?" Naruto shouted over the din, causing a hush to fall over the group. "Let me see – we have one with everything for Choji, sausage for Kiba, pepperoni for Lee, cheese for Sasuke. I take it Gaara and Shikamaru'll be fine with anything, right?"

"Fine by me," Shikamaru replied with a yawn, while Gaara simply nodded once in agreement.

"Sweet, so it's four pizzas for all of us. I think that should work. You guys just hang tight while I place the order," Naruto concluded as he picked up the phone and dialed the familiar digits.

As he waited for the pizza place to pick up, Naruto found that he had actually calmed down considerably now that everyone had arrived. They weren't trying to kill each other, like he'd feared – in fact, they were actually getting along rather well. Sure, Gaara was still being anti-social, but at least he'd shown up. That was a start. As for Sasuke… he was trying to interact with everyone, but it was clear he wasn't quite sure how to behave. Even as the phone rang in his ear, Naruto could tell that Sasuke felt uncomfortable on the couch, not sure of what to say to his more outgoing companions.

_It's not necessarily a bad thing… I didn't expect him to dive head first into this thing. It'll definitely be an adjustment, but I think it'll be good for him. He needs to interact with other people, even if he claims he doesn't want to._

"Hi, TJ's Pizza, what can I do for you?"

The sudden voice on the other end of the line caused Naruto to snap back to reality. "Oh, hey, I'll have one large pizza with everything, one large with sausage, another with pepperoni, and another with just cheese."

"And will that be pick up or delivery?"

"Delivery, please. Our address should be in your system, right?"

"I've got it right here, Mr… Uzumaki. Now, your total will be $45, today. And remember, if your order isn't there in a half hour it's free! Thank you, and have a nice night."

Naruto clicked off the phone and set it back on the receiver, pleased that all the preparations for the night had now been made. Thus, it was with an air of triumph that the blond reentered the living room, where he found Choji, Kiba, Lee, and Shikamaru laughing on the floor, while Gaara and Sasuke looked on from the outside.

"All right, guys. Pizza should be here in a half hour," Naruto announced as he took his place on the carpet. "So, the question is, who's paying?"

"How much is it?" Sasuke asked from the couch.

"Forty-five big ones," the blond replied, "so I think if we all chip in seven bucks or so we should be fine."

"Wait a minute… I've got an idea," Kiba interrupted, picking himself off the couch. "Why don't we make this interesting?"

"Meaning…?" Naruto asked in a worried tone. There was something in the Inuzuka's wolfish grin that he didn't like.

"Remember those contests we were talking about? Well, let's make this the bet for the first one. Whoever loses has to pay for the pizzas!"

"You just don't want to cough up the cash, do you?" Shikamaru chuckled, shooting Kiba a skeptical glance.

"Maybe – I guess it's not my decision, though. Since Lee lost the last challenge, he gets to make the call." Kiba turned to Lee and put on his most pitiful expression. "Well, Lee, what do you say?"

"Sure! And the contest will be… um…" Lee began before putting a hand to his chin. "Let's see here… oh, I know! I'll think of a number between one and one hundred! The one furthest from my number has to pay for the pizza!"

"Doesn't that mean that you can't lose, though?" Choji pouted, crossing his arms stubbornly.

"Good point… how about, if someone picks my number exactly, then I have to pay for the pizza. Sound fair?"

The others nodded in agreement – or, at the very least, offered no protest. Satisfied, Lee ran into the kitchen, where he wrote down a number and tucked it in his pants pocket. Naruto still wasn't thrilled about the whole idea, but he figured the game would at least kill some time before the pizzas arrived.

"Okay, I've picked my number. What're everyone's guesses?" Lee asked, his voice dripping with enthusiasm. "Naruto – you go first."

"9." "37." "79." "54." "1." "27."

"All right, and my number was 100," Lee announced, holding his piece of paper up triumphantly. "So, that means… Shikamaru, you picked 1. You lose!"

Shikamaru shrugged his shoulders, "I only have ten bucks. Sorry, guys."

"Oh, no you don't," Kiba interjected, shaking his finger in the lazy genius's face. "You're not getting off that easy. We'll help pay for the pizzas, but you still have to give the pizza guy the money."

"Yikes, you're making me walk a whole five feet to the door? So cruel…"

Kiba's grin widened, sending a brief shiver down Naruto's spine. He knew that look – the Inuzuka had just received a brilliant idea, which could only mean bad news for Shikamaru.

"Ah, but there's a catch – you must answer the door in your _underwear_," the dog-boy revealed with a somewhat malicious laugh.

"And if I refuse?" the Nara asked, his deadpan expression unfazed by the challenge.

"You can't refuse – it's a bet," Kiba replied, his sly smile growing increasingly obnoxious and childish in his mannerisms.

Shikamaru considered this proposal for a minute while the others watched him in anticipation. Even Gaara seemed interested in how the events would unfold, and Sasuke couldn't help but chuckle at the Inuzuka's dare. Naruto knew better than to interfere in this case – it was too priceless an opportunity to pass up. Everyone's head spun towards the door as a sudden knock was heard, which caused Kiba to repeat his challenge.

"Well, Shikamaru – now's the moment of truth. Are you up for it, or are you too chicken?" the dog-boy asked while Akamaru barked in support of his master.

"Fine, fine – just get the money ready. So troublesome…" Shikamaru concluded as he rose from his seat on the carpet.

_He's actually going through with it? Oh, this is too much…_

With the others forcing themselves to hold back their laughter, lest the pizza man grow suspicious, Shikamaru began to undress, pulling off his t-shirt and tossing it to the ground. He then untied his shoes and removed his socks before undoing his belt, all of which he dropped to the ground. Then, with a final flourish, the Nara dropped his shorts to the ground, leaving him in just a pair of gray boxerbriefs.

"Looking good, man," Kiba said, tears forming in his eyes from stifled laughter.

"Just give me the money, guys," Shikamaru asked, extending his hand with an expression of annoyance.

By this point, most of the guys could barely resist letting out a few giggles as they handed Shikamaru their money. Lee and Gaara appeared to be the only ones unaffected – for Lee, all he could say was, 'use your youth, Shikamaru!' while Gaara watched on in silent amusement. Even Sasuke was starting to crack up – most likely because he already knew Shikamaru well enough. He let out a quiet wolf whistle as he handed his bills over to the Nara.

Gaara was the only one to elicit a reaction out of the lazy genius, though, as he stuck his money in the waistband of Shikamaru's underwear. "Put on a good show, now."

"Shut up," the Nara muttered, adding the bills to his wad of cash as he approached the door.

_Geez, I've never seen Shikamaru snap at anyone like that before. Did they have a fight earlier or something? Or maybe he just doesn't trust Gaara yet… I can understand that, I guess. It's just like with Sasuke the other day…_

The more Naruto thought about it, though, the more he became convinced that there was something more to the animosity. The smirk on Gaara's face as he slipped the bills into the waistband – he wasn't just amused by Shikamaru's embarrassing position. No, there had been something left unsaid between the two of them – something that grated Shikamaru's nerves enough for him to lose his cool. After all, Shikamaru wasn't the only one in the room who was wary of Gaara's presence. Just about everyone – and especially Sasuke – had glanced at him from time to time, keeping tabs on his position, as if he'd strike at any moment.

Yes, something had definitely happened between Shikamaru and Gaara recently, and it made Naruto uneasy, sensing that apparent tension. Still, he had no idea what the source of this hostility was, making it impossible to know how to resolve the issue.

_I'll just have to keep an eye on them, I guess. Maybe it'll all become clear in time…_

Meanwhile, the knocking on the door grew louder as the deliveryman grew impatient. Naruto and the others watched from the living room, practically giddy with anticipation – even Sasuke had moved from his position on the couch to get a better view – while Gaara remained by the door, eyeing the Nara with quiet amusement. Taking one last look back at his friends, Shikamaru sighed and threw open the door, hoping to get everything over with quickly.

When he actually looked the deliveryman in the face, though, the lazy genius grew noticeably flustered, freezing at the sight. He knew that face – that smirk, those green eyes, and those four ponytails poking out from beneath a black TJ's Pizza hat.

"H-hi, Temari…" Shikamaru scratched the back of his head as he tried to act cool.

Naruto was surprised to hear Shikamaru address the girl first, but found the entire situation all the more hilarious. To think that the deliveryman would be a girl, and one he knew! Too perfect… still, the blond couldn't help but note the subtle look of surprise on Gaara's face as well.

"Well, hello," Temari said, her tone a mixture of titillation and laughter. "Shikamaru, right?"

"R-right. Good memory," the Nara replied with a forced laugh, though it came out more as a cough.

"Oh, I have a feeling I'll be remembering this for a while," the blonde mused, placing a finger to her lips as she scanned Shikamaru's mostly naked body from head to toe. "So, just what kind of party did you drag my brother to, exactly?"

"I lost a bet," Shikamaru explained, ignoring the girl's question entirely.

"Hmm… well, it's only fair, I guess. After all, you already saw more than enough of me, right?" Temari continued with a giggle as she playfully snapped the waistband of the Nara's boxerbriefs.

"Umm… well, yeah – you could say that."

Naruto could tell, even with his view obstructed by his friends' stray limbs, that Shikamaru had turned a deep shade of red. He grinned.

_Oh… Shikamaru has a crush…_

"All right, all right – I'll stop harassing you… for now," Temari said, noticing the other boys in the background rolling on the floor in laughter. "That'll be $45."

Shikamaru handed the blonde his wad of bills, which she began to count deliberately slowly. As he stood there, his blush deepening and his hands shaking nervously, the Nara turned towards Kiba and shot him a quick, but pointed glare.

_He's gonna want revenge for this. Poor Kiba…_

"Okay, everything seems to be in order. Here are your pizzas," Temari concluded, piling the boxes into Shikamaru's open arms. "Have fun, now – you too, Gaara!"

With a final wave to the redhead, Temari started down the path and out of sight, at which point Shikamaru heaved a sigh of relief. After kicking the door shut, he set the pizzas down in the kitchen and turned to the crowd, his face still red with a combination of embarrassment and anger.

"Kiba! According to the rules, it's my turn to pick the next contest, right?"

"Yeah, sure is. Though I suggest you put on some pants first," the dog-boy cracked, apparently oblivious to the Nara's vengeful tone.

"No time – I want you to guess how many fingers I'm holding up behind my back. You win, I have to run out and give Temari her tip. I win, and you take my place. Got it?"

"Whatever," Kiba groaned, "just get on with it."

"All right – I'm ready. Naruto's a witness, so I can't change the number," the Nara announced, one hand pressed to the small of his back.

"Let's see… three?"

"Nope, one," Shikamaru said, waving the digit tauntingly before the Inuzuka's face. "Right, Naruto?"

"He's not lying, Kiba – I saw it. You lose," Naruto concurred with a shrug of his shoulders.

"Fine, just hurry up and give me the money, then…"

"Not so fast," Shikamaru interrupted just as Kiba rose to his feet. "I said you'd be taking my place – there was a reason I didn't get dressed, you know."

Kiba's eyes widened in realization. "You mean…"

"That's right – now take 'em off. Or are you too chicken?"

_Oh, he's got him now. Well played, Shikamaru, well played…_

"But… it's still light outside. And it's rush hour – there'll be people out there!" Kiba protested, gesticulating towards the door.

"Not my problem, Kiba. Now hurry up before she drives off – it's a much longer walk to TJ's Pizza," Shikamaru said smugly as he picked up his discarded clothes from the floor.

The Inuzuka briefly looked to the other guys, hoping someone would intervene, but met only unsympathetic eyes. Everyone knew that Kiba had brought it upon himself, and to step in now would only spoil the fun.

"Just get it over with, Kiba," Sasuke commented from the couch, knowing that the dog-boy was trapped.

Hearing this, the Inuzuka removed his shirt in annoyance, tossing it forcefully to the floor. "All right, all right – I see how it is. See if I help you guys out anytime soon…"

Like Shikamaru before him, Kiba undid his shoes, removed his socks, and unbuckled his belt, adding them all to the pile before him. He then unbuttoned his shorts and, hesitating, dropped them to the floor – causing much of the room to burst into laughter. Indeed, the source of Kiba's extreme reluctance became immediately clear, for he was left standing in nothing but a very revealing pair of black briefs.

"Phew-whew! Nice, Kiba!" Naruto whistled, thoroughly enjoying his friend's utter humiliation.

"Naruto! Come on – you can't expect me to go out there like this, can you?" Kiba pleaded, indicating his exposed state.

"To be fair, you did kind of ask for it," the blond replied, patting his housemate on the shoulder sympathetically. "I mean, after what you made Shikamaru go through – plus that time you pantsed me in the pool, not to mention…"

"Okay, I get it – just deserts and all that. Well, just hand me the money so I can get this over with."

Shikamaru, now fully dressed, handed the Inuzuka a few bills, trying to hide his satisfied smile. "Go get 'em, tiger."

Sticking out his tongue childishly, Kiba took the bills, chuckling to himself as he darted out the door. "Well, here goes nothin'."

No sooner had Kiba disappeared down the pathway, calling out to Temari to wait for her tip, than Gaara sealed the door shut and turned the lock, much to the other's amusement.

"Isn't that a bit much, Gaara?" Naruto asked. Even if Kiba had brought this all upon himself, the vulpine boy didn't want to completely humiliate him.

"Don't worry, I'll let him back in. I just want him to sweat a little first," the redhead replied, his expression emotionless as usual.

"All right, then – that'll give us a chance to talk to Shikamaru," the blond began, turning to the aforementioned lazy genius as he spoke. "So, fess up – who is she?"

"I take it you mean Temari? She's Gaara's sister," Shikamaru answered as he collapsed on the floor. "We met when I went to tell him about the party."

"Oh, is that all?" Naruto asked, crossing his arms and raising an eyebrow.

Sasuke seemed eager to join in on the fun, sitting up on the couch to face the Nara. "Come on, we saw the way you were blushing like that. What _really_ happened?"

"You want to know why I was blushing? Maybe you'd like to have a chat with her in your underwear – see how long it takes before you're red in the face."

"Sounds awfully defensive to me, don't you think, Naruto?" Sasuke continued, nudging his boyfriend gently.

"Yeah, something else definitely happened – you didn't start blushing until she said something about seeing 'more than enough of her,'" the blond responded, further analyzing the facts and enjoying it all far too much. "I'll tell you what, let's ask Gaara! Maybe he can tell us all about this, huh? Say, Gaara – do you know why Shikamaru was acting so strangely around your sister?"

"I might," the redhead said cryptically, shooting the Nara a smirk, "but I think Shikamaru would rather tell you himself."

"Yeah, Shikamaru – just tell us! Naruto and Sasuke told us all about their relationship. What's so special about this Temari girl that you need to keep it a secret from us?" Choji asked from the floor, staring up at his housemate.

"Yes! Love is meant to bloom during youth! Please, tell us more about your new girlfriend!" Lee exclaimed, joining in the chorus.

"She's not my girlfriend!" Shikamaru exclaimed, silencing the rest of the room. "Look, the thing is… well, when I went to get Gaara, she answered the door and… well… she was… in her underwear."

Again, the Nara blushed in spite of himself, causing Naruto to smile teasingly. "So, I take it she's quite a looker, then? Big boobs and all that?"

"I think what Naruto's trying to say is – did you like what you saw?" Sasuke asked, finally taking pity on his good friend.

"Well… yes," the Nara admitted, eliciting cheers from the others.

"So what's the problem? I say go for it, man – she was totally flirting with you back there," Naruto continued, throwing an arm around the lazy genius.

"Plus, she works at a pizzeria – maybe she could bring us free samples…" Choji mused, a thin stream of saliva dribbling onto his 'I'll have a cow, man" t-shirt.

"It's not that simple, guys!" Shikamaru muttered in frustration, running a hand through his pineapple-shaped hair. "I barely even know her, and besides…"

"He'd have to go through me."

The guys all turned to stare at Gaara, who had approached their circle during the course of their conversation. His arms were crossed, his eyes only half-opened, and his tone seemed distant. Still, his presence was somehow chilling, even to Naruto.

"What do you mean?" the blond asked, unconsciously taking a step towards Sasuke.

"Well, she's my sister, after all. If someone falls below my standards, then it's my job to make their life a living hell, so she can find someone better," the redhead continued, shrugging his shoulders. "I have very high standards, I'm afraid."

_Is he joking? I still can't really tell with him – I know he doesn't mean any harm, but even though I trust him, I just find him so hard to read…_

"So, yeah – there's that, too," Shikamaru said finally. "I'll think about it, though – how about that?"

Nobody said a word for a full minute. Everyone stared at their feet, checked the clock on the wall, or whistled awkwardly to break the silence. Then, as if to rescue them from their discomfort, there was a sudden, frantic pounding on the door, which caused everyone to forget about their previous conversation.

"Come on, guys! Let me in! There are people coming! H-hello, ma'am. Uh, nice weather we're having?"

Before Kiba could suffer any more, Gaara unlocked the door and stepped back just in time to avoid the Inuzuka's tumbling entrance. The redhead then shut the door just as calmly and joined the newly formed circle surrounding the now red-faced Kiba.

"So, how'd it go?" Naruto asked with a cheeky grin.

"It was fucking awful!" Kiba explained as he hastily stepped into his shorts. "First, I had to shout after Temari before she could drive away, and that drew a lot of attention from our neighbors. Of course, they all came outside to see what the hell was going on, and there I am running by in just my undies, which they found oh-so funny. Temari heard me coming, though, and stopped, but that hardly made things any better, since I had to hand over her tip right by the side of the road. Do you know how busy it is around this time? I wouldn't be surprised if half the fucking city has seen my practically naked by now!"

Now fully dressed, the exasperated dog-boy took a deep breath and continued. "And then, to make matters worse, on my way back up, I ran into our landlady. She thought it was all just a prank, so she slapped me right across the face. See this?" Kiba shouted, pointing to a fresh red mark on his cheek. "That's what that psycho bitch did to me! Thanks a lot, guys."

Naruto and the others were silent for a moment, realizing that things had gotten a bit out of control. "So, I take it that was who you were talking to outside, huh?" the blond asked eventually.

"Yeah – I don't think she was too happy about it." Kiba continued solemnly, causing Naruto to scratch the back of his head awkwardly. Gaara, however, wasn't quite as sympathetic.

"That red spot on your face – that was there before," the redhead stated simply – not a question, but a mere fact.

"No it wasn't," the Inuzuka responded with a dismissive wave.

"Yes it was – it looks more like a sunburn. You had track practice after school, right? That's why Lee was late – he always stays after to help Gai. And my guess is you wear briefs on days when you have track practice, right?"

Kiba looked dumbfounded. "What are you talking about? I never said that…"

"You complained about it the other day. You said your boxers were chafing too much when you ran. I bet you went out and bought some briefs that day," Gaara continued, his simple question quickly becoming an all-out interrogation.

"Well… yeah, okay – they're more comfortable when I'm running, and I did have track today. What of it?" Kiba said defensively as he shifted his feet nervously under the redhead's gaze.

"So, you didn't have your sunscreen today. Naruto said you loaned it to him before gym class, and I saw him throw it in his backpack during lunch. I'll bet it's still there."

Taking Gaara's hint, Naruto hurried to his room and found his backpack, which he dragged back to the witnesses. Sure enough, the bottle of sunscreen was nestled at the bottom of the bag. "He's right! It's still here!"

_How does he know all of this? Has he been studying us that closely all week? Remembering everything we say and do? If he's really trying that hard to get close to us, maybe he's actually taking this friendship thing seriously. Either that, or the other guys are right, and he's just gathering information before exacting his revenge…_

"Well then, Kiba, why don't you tell us what really happened?" Gaara asked, his arms crossed in victory.

The dog-boy hesitated for a second, trying to think of some excuse that might get him out of his current predicament. Seeing that he'd only be digging himself into an even deeper hole, though, Kiba finally conceded defeat with a sheepish grin. "Geez, Gaara – way to spoil my fun. I really had them going, too."

"Wait, so you mean all that stuff that happened?" Lee asked, looking positively confused by the revelation.

"I spiced it up, okay?" Kiba admitted with a shrug of his shoulders. "Yes, I had to call after Temari, and yes a few people saw me, but it wasn't that big of a deal. Embarrassing, yes – traumatic, no. I just wanted to make you guys feel guilty for a bit, that's all."

"So you were just talking to yourself outside?" Choji asked, having been close enough to the door to hear the dog-boy's conversation outside.

"That? Well, there was a woman who passed by and gave me a funny look, but it wasn't anyone I knew."

The others let the details of Kiba's elaborate scheme sink in for a moment, unsure of what exactly to say. It was brilliant, but they were all still too irritated to admit this to the Inuzuka. After a moment, however, Shikamaru stepped forward and extended his hand to Kiba.

"Touché, Kiba, touché," he said simply and calmly. "Truce?"

"Truce," the dog-boy agreed, shaking the offered hand. "No more humiliating bets. For now, at least…"

"You two gonna kiss, or can we eat?" Sasuke asked as he rose with a groan from the couch.

"We must fill our bodies with delicious sustenance if we are to truly exercise our minds and bodies!" Lee shouted as he rushed into the kitchen.

"Hands off my pizza! I must get the first slice!" Choji roared as he barreled down after the mop-topped teen.

"Not if I get there first!" Naruto exclaimed, racing after the duo, with his other guests following close behind.

In the chaos of flailing limbs, flying boxes, and vanishing pizza that followed, everyone somehow managed to get at least three slices, while many had more. Choji simply ate out of the box, taking several bites of his enormous pizza at once. Not to be outdone, Lee had begun shoveling as much pizza into his mouth as possible, coming close to choking as he tried to wash it all down with Coke. Meanwhile, Naruto grabbed several slices from different boxes, taking a bite out of each before moving on to the next. The only ones to eat reasonably were Sasuke, Gaara, and Shikamaru, who each found a topping of their liking and placed a few slices onto their plates.

As his guests wolfed down their respective meals, Naruto took a moment to look around the room and reflect on the night thus far. The bets had gotten a little out of hand, the blond concluded, but nobody had been harmed by them. Everyone had enjoyed the game – even Kiba, who would've had every right to be angry with the rest of them, was still laughing and having a good time.

Still, the question remained of Sasuke. While he was certainly trying to have fun, the Uchiha had been relatively quiet during the game. The only people he seemed to talk to were Naruto and Shikamaru, and while that was nice, it could hardly be considered an improvement. Naruto wanted Sasuke to interact with his new friends – Kiba, Lee, Choji, even Gaara, to a certain extent. The blond reassured himself, though, that the night was young – Sasuke still had plenty of time to warm up to his new companions.

"Okay, I got dibs on the next contest, right?" Kiba asked, his voice muffled by a mouthful of pizza. He swallowed before continuing. "Well, I've got one – between me and Gaara."

_Oh geez – this is gonna end well…_

"What did you have in mind," Gaara asked before sipping on some ginger ale.

"It's simple – whoever can eat a slice of pizza the fastest wins. The loser has to kiss Akamaru."

"Who's Akamaru?" the redhead asked, raising an eyebrow – or, where an eyebrow would be if he'd had one.

"This little guy right here," the Inuzuka replied, holding up his white puppy by the armpits. "Well, what do you say?"

"I think it sounds asinine."

Kiba turned to the others at the table, "I don't know, guys – sounds like he's afraid he might lose. Not that I can blame him – he probably eats like a bird."

Gaara closed his eyes, ignoring the growing catcalls from the others. Naruto found it a bit surprising that they'd gang up on the redhead so easily – then again, they were supposed to be treating him like one of the group. This was almost like an initiation for him, which was good, in some strange, twisted way.

"Fine, I'll do it," the redhead said. "Don't even bother with the contest, though – just hand me the mutt."

"What? But what kind of bet is that?" Kiba protested, feeling somehow cheated by Gaara's indifference.

"Please. This game has been about embarrassing dares from the beginning. Now hand me Akamaru."

_He's got a point. The contests have pretty much been an excuse to make people do embarrassing things…_

"Fine, have it your way. Now pucker up!" the Inuzuka said in a singsong voice.

Handing the perplexed Akamaru over to Gaara, Kiba seemed genuinely excited for what was probably the most childish act of the night. Despite how juvenile it was, though, Naruto also found himself strangely intrigued. Had it been someone like Lee kissing Akamaru, it wouldn't have been a big deal. To see Gaara doing something so silly, however, was a different matter altogether. The image did not seem possible in Naruto's mind, and he was curious to see whether the redhead would actually go through with it.

Taking the puppy by the armpits, Gaara tentatively drew him towards his face, eyeing the dog with disgust. When Akamaru was just a few inches from his face, the redhead closed his eyes and prepared for the inevitable. What he discovered, however, was that Akamaru was ready to make the first move, curiously licking Gaara's face while the table burst into laughter.

"Looks like someone's happy to meet you, Gaara," Naruot teased as the redhead's face twisted into a look of disgust.

All the laughter died instantly, though, when Akamaru made an unplanned move. Rather than simply continued licking Gaara's face, the puppy decided, at that moment, that his bladder was full. Everyone only watched in silence as a yellow stream flowed onto Gaara's shirt, producing a light, splattering sound.

_We're all gonna die, we're all gonna die…_

"Charming little mutt, isn't he?" Gaara muttered before setting Akamaru on the ground. Almost immediately, the petite, white puppy scampered off, sensing that it had done something wrong. "I take it he's not house trained?"

"Geez, Gaara… he must've gotten too excited," Kiba offered, fearing some sort of retribution.

"No kidding," the redhead replied, staring at the wet area on his shirt in revulsion.

"Look, why don't you come with me and we'll find you a new shirt," Naruto interrupted, seizing Gaara's wrist. "Unless you want to smell like dog piss all night."

Gaara nodded, and together he and Naruto started for the blond's bedroom. There, with the door shut, Naruto began rummaging through his drawers for a shirt, feeling incredibly guilty for what had happened.

_What a disaster. So much for Gaara fitting in with the others… we'll be lucky if he doesn't kill us all by the end of the night…_

"I'm so sorry about that, Gaara," the blond stammered as he tossed a shirt out onto the carpet. "Please, don't hold it against Kiba. He didn't mean for it to happen…"

"Oh, I know – I probably had it coming, anyway, after I locked him out earlier," Gaara replied as he looked around the room with apparent interest.

"Still, I'm sorry about your shirt. I'll try to wash it this weekend and give it back to you on Monday…"

"Don't bother," Gaara said quickly with a wave of his hand. "Just throw it away. It was getting old anyway…"

"If you say so… but let me at least find you a replacement shirt. Something you can keep, you know?"

Naruto continued his search, trying to find something that would fit Gaara's smaller frame. He had never considered it before, but despite Gaara's reputation as a fearsome, brutal maniac, he didn't exactly have an intimidating physique. In fact, he looked completely average in size – but Naruto knew from experience how misleading that appearance was. It showed in his eyes, that murderous power that Gaara had put to use time and again, but Naruto couldn't help but notice that the glint had dimmed in the past few days. It wasn't that Gaara had lost his fighting spirit, but more that he'd shifted his focus to something else. He almost looked calm.

"Ah, here we go!" Naruto announced in satisfaction, holding up his find. It was a faded green t-shirt bearing the image of the Konoha leaf. "My dad bought me this when I first started here at Konoha High. It doesn't fit me anymore, though – you can have it, if you want."

Naruto tossed the shirt to Gaara, who caught it with one hand. "Thanks."

They stood there in silence for a moment, before Naruto finally laughed awkwardly. "Well, are you gonna put it on or what?"

"Oh, right…"

After a second's hesitation, Gaara dropped the new t-shirt onto Naruto's bed and stripped off his own, urine-soaked shirt, which he rolled into a ball. Tossing the wet shirt into a nearby trashcan, the redhead reached for the new shirt, which he began to pull over his head. Before Gaara could pull the shirt on completely, though, Naruto couldn't help but notice his bare midriff, which was still bruised from their fight the weekend before.

_I wonder how many times he's been bruised like that. How long has he been pushing the rest of the world away? Is this what would've happened to me… to Sasuke… if we hadn't found someone we could trust? Would we have beaten ourselves up so badly, suffered blow after blow, until we no longer even cared about the pain? Until the pain we received and the pain we inflicted were the only things reminding us that we were alive?_

_Is that why he didn't want to take off his shirt? Because he wanted to hide that part of himself, the part that wants to resist the world? Or is he ashamed to have been defeated? Just give me a sign, Gaara…_

"What's with you?"

Naruto looked up and found that Gaara had finished donning his new shirt, and was now staring at him curiously. "Oh, I'm sorry – just spacing out, I guess."

"I see," the redhead said simply before plopping down on the bed. "Tell me, do you think Uchiha's enjoying the party?"

"Always with the 'Uchiha' thing, huh?" Naruto replied, completely ignoring the actual question. "What do you have against him? You get along okay with everyone else… even Kiba, and his dog just took a leak on you! Do you really hate him that much?"

"No, I don't hate him. I don't think I could actually hate any of your friends… even Uchiha," Gaara responded, staring intently at the blond, as if he was reading Naruto's very soul. "No, I'd say he's more of… a rival, I suppose."

"A rival? But you're not even competing in anything? How could he possibly be a rival…?"

"All in good time, Naruto," the redhead whispered before turning his head to the door. "Now, you still haven't answered _my_ question."

"What?"

"Do you think Uchiha's enjoying the party? He's been awfully quiet all evening."

Naruto considered the question for a minute. He'd been avoiding the very same issue himself, and was hoping that he could just brush off Gaara's inquiry. Seeing that this would be impossible, though, the blond decided to simply think aloud.

"Well, I'm not sure. I'd like to think so, but I know that Sasuke's not really used to this type of thing," Naruto began as he put some of the scattered shirts back in their drawer. "I mean, he doesn't really like to be connected with people, you know? He's… he's afraid that he might lose the people he loves, so instead of going through the pain of loss, he'd rather just try to avoid love altogether."

"That must be rough for you. Do you ever think it'd be easier to find someone devoted entirely to you?"

"That's just it, though! Sasuke _is_ devoted to me… or, at least, I'm devoted to him. I can't really know what he's thinking, but I feel like he cares about me just as much. He doesn't have a lot of people he really trusts, and most of those relationships took months, maybe even years to develop. But I've known Sasuke – I mean really known him – for just over a week, and we're boyfriends. He must feel something for me, right?"

"That makes sense. Has he ever told you so?"

"Well, in his own way, yes. He's kind of indirect, but that's fine with me. It's new for him, so I know every little expression of affection means a lot. That's why I think this party is so important. I wanted to give him – and you – a chance to meet with the rest of my friends, so we can be like our own little family." Naruto scratched his head at this point, feeling rather sheepish. "Wow, that sounded even cornier than I thought it would."

"Not at all."

_What's with him? Why's he being so… weird, all of a sudden?_

"So, I guess the bottom line is, I don't know. I want Sasuke to have a good time, but I'm not sure if this is the type of thing he'll enjoy. He's here, so that means, whether it's for me or for himself, he wants to be here. I guess that'll have to be enough."

"All right, then. As long as you're happy," Gaara concluded as he rose from the corner of the bed.

Before the redhead could leave the room, Naruto stopped him, grabbing his shoulder as he reached for the doorknob. "I'm sorry, there's just one more thing I wanted to ask you. It's about Shikamaru… you see, he's my friend too, and if you're really planning to make his life miserable, I'll have to stop you."

"Oh, that," Gaara said, turning his head to look at the blond. "I'm not planning on actually stopping Shikamaru from dating my sister. I'm just messing with his head a bit – think of it as a mind game. He likes those, right?"

"A mind game? Is that what this all is to you? One big game, so you can play with our emotions?"

Naruto was fuming on the inside over Gaara's flippant remark, but he tried this best to keep those feelings hidden. After all, he was trying to be friends with Gaara – he didn't think another fight would do much to further his cause.

"This? A mind game?" Gaara replied in a somber tone. "Never, Naruto. Not with you – now let's get going. They're probably wondering what happened to us."

Naruto nodded, still a bit perplexed by the whole conversation, and followed Gaara back out to the kitchen area. There, the others were gathered around Choji, who was chugging a bottle of root beer, having already finished his entire pizza. Seeing Naruto and Gaara's return, however, their attention was quickly diverted.

"About time you guys got back," Kiba said as he returned to his seat. "Sorry about your shirt, Gaara – I put Akamaru in my room for the night."

"Don't worry about it. Let's just eat."

And eat they did. They piled on more slices, until the four cardboard boxes were completely empty, and several empty 2-liters lay on the floor. Before they were all finished, however, Gaara spoke up, much to everyone's surprise.

"Uchiha, I've decided on my dare for you," the redhead said, causing Sasuke to freeze with a slice of pizza between his teeth.

"No contest? You're not even going to try?"

"I could, but that would just be a waste of time. Now, I want you to answer a little question for me," Gaara continued, leaning forward expectantly. "When Naruto stepped in to fight for you the other day – I'm wondering, would you have done the same thing for him?"

_Dammit, Gaara! Why would you ask him that? Are you just trying to cause trouble?_

"Sasuke! You're all out of Coke, there. Let me get you some more," Naruto interrupted, handing Sasuke a fresh 2-liter of cola.

Before he had time to realize what he'd done, Naruto saw Sasuke unscrew the cap, his eyes still focused on Gaara. In an instant, the frantic teen remembered why that particular 2-liter had been put off to the side, but it was too late – the liquid burst force, spraying right into Sasuke's face.

It only lasted a second, but to Naruto it felt like an eternity, seeing that Coke spraying into Sasuke's face, running down his shirt, all while the others looked on in surprise. When the explosion stopped, however, replaced only by the carbonated fizzing, it was the Uchiha who broke the silence – with a laugh.

"Well, that was different," he replied, wiping some of the cola from his face with a napkin. "I hope you know this means war, Naruto."

_Oh shit…_

With that, the Uchiha reached for the nearest, unopened bottle of Mountain Dew, which he began to shake vigorously. To Naruto's right, Choji and Lee blocked the path, eager to prevent the blond's escape and witness some action. With the pop now fizzing rapidly, Sasuke rushed in and opened the bottle in Naruto's face, sending a flood of Mountain Dew into his open mouth and up his nose.

Spluttering and coughing, Naruto wiped the soda from his eyes and began to laugh uncontrollably. Somewhat confused, Sasuke leaned in, afraid that he'd somehow hurt his boyfriend.

"What's the matter with you? Did the caffeine go straight to your brain or something?"

"No! It's your face!" the blond exclaimed, clutching his sides as he laughed. "You look like a drowned rat!"

"You're not much better," Choji countered, gasping for breath between outbursts.

Indeed, everyone at the table was quite entertained by the whole ordeal – even Gaara was chuckling to himself. Naruto was pleased by this, as it seemed that the redhead had forgotten about his question, or at the very least had let it go for the moment. It was clear that the question had made Sasuke uncomfortable, and Naruto was determined to keep the Uchiha in a good mood for the remainder of the night.

"Well… now that we're completely soaked, shall we go get changed?" the blond asked, turning to his boyfriend with a grin.

No sooner had these words left Naruto's mouth than a sudden clap of thunder caused the windows to rattle, drowning out all the other noise in the room. For a moment they all remained silent, listening to the low rumbling as the thunder resonated, not sure of how to react. When they finally heard the pitter-patter of rain falling outside the apartment, there was a single, collective sigh.

"So – I guess we're staying overnight, huh?" Shikamaru said, glancing at Naruto.

"Looks like it," the blond replied, putting a hand to his chin. "This storm's gonna last for hours. Do we have extra blankets, Kiba?"

"There's some in the closet, I think. You know Iruka, he had to make sure you'd be set for every emergency imaginable."

As the Inuzuka walked into the hallway to find the aforementioned blankets, Naruto turned his attention back to Sasuke and their still-drenched state.

"Well, do you need extra clothes for tonight, then? Or are you gonna stay in those sticky clothes all night?"

"Look, we're just gonna watch the movie and go to sleep, right?" the Uchiha said, nodding his head towards the living room. "I'll just get undressed now, then. Not a big deal."

"You're sure? What if you get cold?"

"I'll have a blanket. I'll be fine, Naruto. What'd I say about being such a worrywart?"

_He's got a point. Still, I can't tell if he's just lying for my sake, or if he really doesn't care. Why can't I read anyone today? Am I just distracted? But what?_

_I guess I just want Sasuke to confirm for me how he feels. It should be enough for me that he's here, that he wants to be around me… but I want to hear him say it! Gaara's right – I want him to tell me how much I matter to him. He said I could write about him in the essay – that means he thinks I'm important, right? But… I can't take these hints forever. I need something concrete!_

"Got the blankets! Let's get on with the movie already!" Kiba announced, holding a bundle of sheets in both arms.

The others nodded in agreement and headed for the living room, where they all picked their spots by around the television. Most were satisfied with a spot on the floor, while Naruto and Sasuke shared the couch. With the lights out, everyone got ready to watch the movie and go to sleep. Naruto and Sasuke stripped out of their wet clothes to their light blue boxers and black boxerbriefs, respectively, before climbing onto the couch and wrapping a blanket around themselves. Kiba, likewise, undressed to his briefs, while Shikamaru simply removed his pants, opting to keep his t-shirt on. Lee wore only his tighty-whities underneath his sheets, Choji slept in his undershirt and boxers, while Gaara remained fully clothed, resting his head against the couch.

Once everyone was settled, Kiba popped in _Zoolander_, and they all sat back and watched the film. It was, as Naruto had determined, silly, but everyone enjoyed it because it _was_ so ridiculous. About an hour and a half into the movie, though, the sugar high the teens had received from their soda binge wore off, and by the time the credits rolled, the music was drowned out by a combination of light snores and the drone of pouring rain.

It was then, as the screen went black, that Naruto realized how close he was to Sasuke. Even though they had made out on multiple occasions, he'd never spent such an extended period of time in intimate contact with the Uchiha. After all, he was lying in just his boxers, with Sasuke's bare body pressed up against his backside. At any other time, he might've focused more on this sensual moment, how he was practically naked and being embraced by the boy he loved. Right then, though, Naruto's mind was not on sex – but rather, on Gaara's question.

_I need an answer… I need to know, somehow…_

"Naruto," Sasuke whispered, causing the vulpine boy to stir suddenly. "Are you awake?"

"Yeah," the blond replied, turning his head to glance at his boyfriend. "What's up?"

"It's about what Gaara said… his question, I guess," the Uchiha said, shifting uncomfortably under the blankets. "I wasn't sure about it at first – that's why I hesitated. I mean, I was mad at you when Gaara started that fight… I didn't want to see you again. But… now that I think about it, I know I would've stepped in if he'd been fighting you instead."

"But… why?"

"I don't know. Probably for the same reason you defended me," Sasuke replied, his voice now lower than a whisper. "I know I would've regretted it for the rest of my life. Even though I was mad at you… even though I'd tried to convince myself that I hated you… I knew you still mattered to me. And to let someone I care about get hurt… I just can't do that. You know why."

Naruto did. He also knew that anything he said would completely ruin the moment, so he just rolled around on the couch, facing his boyfriend, and kissed him gently. They lay there for a moment, each enjoying the feel of the others embrace, before pulling out of the kiss in a sort of mystifying unison. As they lay there, neither one able to see the other's smile, but both knowing it was there, they suddenly heard a third party enter the conversation from the foot of the couch.

"I knew it, Uchiha."

Naruto gently nudged Gaara with his foot, to which the redhead chuckled before nestling into his blanket. With a satisfied sigh, the blond decided that it was an appropriate time for him to go to sleep as well. Thus, with one arm draped over Sasuke, Naruto faded into sleep, with one final, affirming thought crossing his mind.

_I knew it too, Sasuke. Somehow, I knew it too…_


	20. I Was So Hard to Please

20. I Was So Hard to Please

When Sasuke awoke the next morning, he momentarily forgot where he was. He knew he wasn't home – the couch he was sleeping on felt nothing like his bed – but for whatever reason he didn't recognize his whereabouts. It was as if the entire night before had been some sort of bizarre dream. Shikamaru and Kiba running around in their underwear, Akamaru peeing on Gaara, the soda fight with Naruto – he remembered it all quite clearly, but it felt strangely distant. He couldn't actually believe it had all happened just a few hours before, that he'd actually participated in something so _normal_.

_Well, normal in some sense, I guess…_

It was only when Sasuke's eyes adjusted to the dim, morning light that he began to take it all in. The faint snores coming from around the room, the couch, and his position curled up in a ball with Naruto, all told him one thing: it was no dream. The Uchiha wasn't sure what to feel at first. It was a little frightening, to think he'd spent the previous evening connecting with such a large group of people. All those bonds he'd formed, all the memories he'd carry with him from that night – there was still that lingering fear that it would all come back to haunt him. These feelings quickly vanished, however, when he considered his position once again.

He had just spent the night with his arms wrapped around the boy he loved. It was embarrassing, to think he'd been cuddling the blond like a teddy bear all night long. Did Naruto know? Maybe he'd already been asleep when Sasuke decided to embrace him, or maybe he was too tired to notice. Did it even matter? Why should he care whether his boyfriend knew about that moment of tenderness? That's what love was all about, right?

Still, Sasuke felt like he'd somehow betrayed himself. That reputation he'd earned as a cold, heartless bastard, had now been completely shattered by a night snuggling with Naruto. As humiliated as the Uchiha was, though, he knew he couldn't stay angry with himself. It was just too easy to fall back into that feeling of contentment and pull Naruto closer.

_He still smells like soda…_

So, there he lay, hugging Naruto to him under the blankets, their heads just poking out the top. It was nice. Yes, Sasuke could get used to that simple comfort of lying next to his boyfriend, and he would've, if a little thing called 'sex,' hadn't got in the way. The Uchiha lasted only a minute or so with his bare skin rubbing up against Naruto's before he became suddenly aware that he was practically naked. As was Naruto. Save for their underwear, they were completely nude beneath the sheets.

Just this simple realization changed Sasuke's mindset completely. The pleasures of Naruto's presence, of his gentle, peaceful aura, were brushed aside. In their place were only observations of a more physical sort. The smooth texture of Naruto's skin, the warmth from his body, his faint, morning musk, and the firmness of the blond's muscles hidden beneath the blanket. Sasuke felt his hand slowly, carefully run up and down Naruto's front, feeling every square inch of his torso from his chest down to his flat stomach. The Uchiha even paused to feel his boyfriend's stomach move up and down with each breath, and soon his own breathing had slowed to match his boyfriend's.

_This is wrong … so wrong. But why can't I stop?_

Sasuke knew the answer of course: because it felt right. He wanted to have this moment of intimacy, to learn more about Naruto. They'd already covered mental part of their relationship, learning about each other in great detail. Now he needed to get closer physically, before they could advance their relationship emotionally.

The Uchiha's hands wandered a touch lower, until they found the waistband of Naruto's boxers. Not daring to move any further south, Sasuke opted to slide his fingers along this boundary, moving from the front over to the backside. There, he paused.

_Do I dare? His breathing's steady – he must still be asleep. If I move quickly, I should be fine._

Holding his breath, Sasuke let his hand glide over the waistband of Naruto's boxers, exploring below the belt. His fingers brushing against the cotton boxers, Sasuke moved across the blond's firm butt, his hand even passing ever so briefly between the twin mounds. It was exciting for the Uchiha, finally feeling that bubble butt. He remembered admiring it from afar a few days before in the showers at school, and now here he was, actually touching it. Unfortunately, as this thought crossed Sasuke's mind, another person became suddenly aware of the Uchiha's hands.

"Sasuke? Are you… are you touching my ass?" Naruto asked groggily, turning his head to meet his boyfriend's gaze.

_Busted._

"What? No – my hand must've bumped against it in my sleep, that's all…"

"But, if you were asleep… why'd you answer me so quickly?" the blond asked, apparently still in a fog.

"I don't know, I guess I woke up just before you did or something," Sasuke responded quickly, though his reddening cheeks revealed the truth.

"Well, well, looks like someone's lying," Naruto said with a smirk, turning his body around on the couch. "Admit it – you were feeling me up, weren't you?"

Sasuke knew he'd been caught. His face turned an even deeper shade of red as he replied. "Yeah… I guess I was. I'm sorry."

"What're you sorry for? I would've done the same thing in your position," the blond admitted with a grin. "It _is_ a bit unfair, though. Why should you get to have all the fun? I'll tell you what: let's finish this in my room."

Sasuke only nodded as Naruto carefully stepped off the couch, avoiding the other sleeping guests on the floor. As the blond tiptoed across the floor, Sasuke couldn't help but admire his butt on more time, secretly wishing his boxers would drop suddenly to the floor. Once on the other side, Naruto paused and turned to his boyfriend, beckoning him with a wave of his hand. With that, the vulpine boy continued down the hall, leaving Sasuke to make the treacherous journey across the body-strewn floor.

As he kicked off the covers, the Uchiha became immensely glad that he'd waited for his boyfriend to move first. Looking down, he found that his exploration of Naruto's body had produced some noticeable side effects in his boxerbriefs, which were now quite tented. Knowing that he couldn't keep Naruto waiting forever, though, Sasuke took a deep breath and stepped foot on the carpet. Daring not even to make a noise, the raven-haired teen crossed the floor, praying to himself that none of the other guys would wake up and see him standing there with a case of morning wood.

Fortunately, by the time Sasuke had cleared the living room and entered the hallway his obvious erection had subsided, preventing any further humiliation as he followed Naruto into his bedroom. As the couple entered, Naruto tentatively sealed the door shut, trying not to make the door creak, lest they wake the others.

"So, what are we doing, exactly?" Sasuke asked, only to have Naruto press a finger to his lips.

"Shh – just lie down on the bed. I'll handle the rest."

Sasuke knew that look – it was better just to go with Naruto's plan than to offer any resistance. It would only spoil the mood, anyway. So, the Uchiha lay back on the bed, resting his head on the blond's pillow. It felt strange, lying there practically naked in front of his boyfriend, but it was a good kind of strange. Not so much weird, but more like exotic. All Sasuke could think was how he didn't want to pop a boner again.

Naruto had something else on his mind, though, as he crawled onto the bed, straddling his boyfriend. His eyes were filled with hunger, as if Sasuke was a piece of meat being dangled in front of Naruto after a weeklong fast. Licking his lips, the blond towered over Sasuke, a naughty smirk on his face.

_What's he planning?_

Without saying a word, Naruto took his finger and ran it gently down Sasuke's chest, following a path down the exact center. When he reached the Sasuke's navel, Naruto traced a circle around his belly button, and then playfully snapped the waistband of the Uchiha's boxerbriefs.

"You're still sticky from that soda fight last night," Naruto observed with a whisper.

"So are you," Sasuke replied, somewhat puzzled by the statement.

"Let me take care of that, then."

With that, Naruto moved back up to Sasuke's chest and leaned in, so that his face was hovering just above the skin. There, he slid his tongue out and began to lick the Uchiha's skin, savoring the flavors of the sticky soda remnants, as well as the delicate taste of Sasuke's flesh and sweat. At first Sasuke wanted to push the blond away, feeling a little creeped out by the sensation his boyfriend's tongue left, but he resisted this temptation. It was certainly a foreign feeling, but it wasn't necessarily bad. The wetness left in Naruto's wake – it was nice, actually. It was almost as if Naruto was marking his territory, claiming Sasuke as his own. In fact, it wasn't that different from what Sasuke had done that morning.

After Naruto had explored the majority of Sasuke's chest inch by wonderful inch, he turned his attention to two particular points: his nipples. Sasuke heard a soft moan escape his lips as the blond began to suck on his nipple, his tongue brushing against the tip as he worked. The Uchiha chanced a look down at his boyfriend, only to find that Naruto had closed his eyes in concentration.

_He's really into this, isn't he – oh! That felt good…_

Sasuke soon had to close his own eyes, so that he could focus more on the sensations Naruto was making him feel. For a brief moment, there was nothing, which left the Uchiha feeling frustrated. Why would Naruto stop now, when it felt so good? Shortly thereafter, though, he squirmed as the blond went to work on the other nipple. Again, he moaned.

"You like that, huh?" Naruto asked, before sucking once more on the nipple.

"Don't talk…"

Naruto's response was to tickle the Uchiha briefly with his tongue, sending another wave of pleasure through Sasuke's body. The raven-haired teen found his breathing accelerating as Naruto continued to tease him, sucking ever so delicately on his nipple. Rather than try to control himself, though, and steady his breathing, Sasuke found his hand rising towards his boyfriend's golden hair, which he began to caress slowly.

Sasuke couldn't say why he felt the need to feel Naruto at that moment. He was already having a wonderful experience by simply allowing Naruto to lick every inch of his body, but that felt so shallow. Even though he'd already explored Naruto's body back on the couch, Sasuke didn't want to be passive in this expression of their affection. So, even though it was just a small gesture, the Uchiha ran his fingers through Naruto's golden locks, feeling both the silky, smooth strands and the gnarled patches of bed head.

_Does he mind if I do this? Would I mind it if I were in his position? Before… I'd probably hate him for it – _that_ was a good spot – but now… I don't think I'd mind. It's like this. I never would've let Naruto do this before, but… I've changed._

Sasuke was pleased to find that Naruto didn't resist his boyfriend's caresses, but continued to clean the sticky soda from the Uchiha's bare torso. He'd moved south from the nipples not too long before, and was now making his way down to Sasuke's stomach. That area was particularly tender and ticklish, and Sasuke had to resist the urge to squirm with every lick. Before long, Naruto had reached the Uchiha's belly button, at which point Sasuke gasped.

Naruto had placed his entire mouth around the navel and inserted his tongue, wiggling it back and forth rapidly, sending ripple after ripple of titillation through Sasuke's entire body.

_Oh god… Naruto, when did you…_

Suddenly, Sasuke felt it – that tingling sensation just a bit further below where Naruto was licking. In just a few seconds, his growing member was pressing up against his boxerbriefs, producing a highly noticeable bulge in the cloth. Realizing that Naruto might move on from his belly button at any moment, Sasuke jolted to the side and rolled off the bed, landing on the floor with a loud thud. Naruto, having moved his legs just in time to avoid the fleeing Uchiha, was left with nothing to hold onto, and instead wound up kissing the bedspread in bewilderment.

"Sasuke, what the hell?" Naruto asked, wiping the cotton from his tongue.

"Sorry, I just remembered that the other guys might be waking up soon," Sasuke replied, sitting hunched over on the ground to hide his embarrassing state. "Maybe we should finish this some other time…"

"All right," Naruto pouted, his legs dangling off the edge of the bed and his hands resting on his lap. "You probably should take a shower before you get dressed, though."

"What're you trying to say," the Uchiha replied defensively, his arms crossed over his bare chest.

"Well, just look at you," the blond said, pointing at his boyfriend with a free hand.

Sasuke glanced down at himself, fearing that Naruto had noticed the growing problem in his pants. Instead, he realized that his entire torso was glistening from traces of saliva. He laughed. "You're probably right. Where's the bathroom?"

"It's just down the hall. Should be on your left," Naruto replied as he rose off the bed, adjusting his sky blue boxers before ushering his boyfriend to the door.

"Thanks," Sasuke said simply as he also rose to his feet, though he walked with his back to the blond, so as to conceal his front.

Naruto nodded and waited in the bedroom as the Uchiha headed for the bathroom, which he found with ease. As soon as he stepped in, Sasuke sealed the door shut and stripped off his boxerbriefs, pausing momentarily to examine his reflection in the mirror. He hadn't noticed before in Naruto's darkened room, but now he could clearly see numerous red marks on his skin. Every spot where the blond had gingerly sucked on Sasuke's flesh had been slightly irritated, and Sasuke knew it was highly noticeable. He didn't regret what he'd done, but he hoped that the marks would fade by gym class on Monday. Sasuke didn't particularly want the entire school knowing what'd happened that morning.

Thus, with an amused sigh, Sasuke pulled the shower curtain back and stepped inside, where he turned the water as hot as it would go. At first, it was frigid, and the Uchiha stepped back out of the spray in shock. After a minute or so, though, there was a nice cloud of steam, and Sasuke walked under the showerhead, letting the hot water rush through his hair.

Sasuke was reluctant to eliminate the feeling of Naruto licking him. It had been strangely tender, and he didn't want to wash it off so soon. It was like when they'd kissed under the bridge earlier that week. As strange as it had been, making out in the middle of the stream like that, it had been sweet. This was similar. Sure, Sasuke thought it was different, having his entire body licked like that, but he'd enjoyed it. To him, it was just another way of Naruto expressing his affection for him. It almost made him feel guilty, to think that he was washing the trace amounts of Naruto's saliva from his body, but Sasuke knew he couldn't just ignore it.

_It's not that I'm ashamed of what happened… but I don't want the whole world to know that Naruto and I shared an intimate moment either. It's personal – our thing. Or maybe… maybe I'm just not ready for the world to know, yet. It's still so new to me… I feel like everything's moving so fast…_

As Sasuke thought of this, reaching for the soap beneath the showerhead, he heard it. The whole thing happened in a blur – one second he was bending over for the soap, the next he was spinning around in shock, for the shower curtain was torn open. There, standing in birthday suit, was Naruto with a naughty grin on his face.

"What the hell are you doing, Naruto? I'm in here!" Sasuke snapped, pulling the curtain around him modestly.

"You honestly think I don't know that?" Naruto asked, stepping into the shower as well. He winced as the steaming water ran around his bare foot. "I came to join you."

Sasuke felt a twitch down below at the thought, which reminded him of why he'd fled for the shower to begin with. "No, you can't! I mean…"

"Sasuke, I know why you left in such a hurry. I don't really care," Naruto said, placing his hands on his hips. "Look, I'm hard too, all right?"

In spite of himself, Sasuke found his eyes drawn to Naruto's crotch where, indeed, he confirmed the blond's statement. Apparently Sasuke wasn't the only one who'd been turned on by their little make-out session. He blushed.

"Geez, Naruto! I don't want to see that!"

"Yes, you do," the vulpine boy replied, taking a step towards Sasuke and into the hot shower spray. "You think I forgot how you reacted the last time you saw me naked?"

Another twitch.

"Well… I don't know. That was different!" Sasuke protested, his blush deepening as he pulled the curtain tighter around him. Again, his eyes drifted involuntarily towards Naruto's crotch, and the Uchiha found himself licking his lips.

"Yeah, sure. This time I know you're watching me," Naruto replied, placing a hand on the curtain. "And you know I'm watching you. Now, stop resisting and just enjoy it, okay?"

Sasuke stared at his boyfriend for a moment, feeling his will melting away as he fell deeper into those deep, blue eyes. Again, he was afraid things were moving too fast, but he found himself releasing his grip on the curtain nonetheless. The water pressed the curtain back to the side, and there they were – two boyfriends, standing completely naked before each other.

"There now, that wasn't so hard, was it?" Naruto said, gazing down at the newly revealed area. "Well, maybe 'hard' isn't the right word…"

"Very funny," Sasuke responded, turning his head to the side in embarrassment.

"What? It's nothing to be ashamed of," the blond said, taking another step towards the Uchiha.

Sasuke turned his head to the front and gave a start. He and Naruto were now practically face-to-face, with only an inch or so separating them. The water ran over both their heads, the steam rising up between them and over the curtain, yet Sasuke felt numb. What should he do? He wasn't prepared for this.

"Naruto…"

"It's fine, Sasuke. Just don't think about it," Naruto said, taking a final step forward.

Sasuke closed the gap as well, and they leaned into each other for a kiss. The Uchiha wasn't sure what deserved his focus. Should he just work on the kiss? What about their naked bodies rubbing up against each other? What should he do with his hands? It was incredibly awkward for a moment, and apparently Naruto had a similar problem on the other end of the kiss, because he was not nearly as active as usual. There was no action with his tongue, no delicate sucking on the lips – he hadn't even budged from his initial position. It was as if neither of them could think of anything other than applying more pressure.

In fact, it was only after several seconds that Sasuke felt Naruto's hands. They had been dangling uselessly at the blond's side, but Sasuke now felt them resting on the back of his neck. They traveled up from there, as if Naruto couldn't quite find the right spot, until they dug their way into the Uchiha's wet, black hair. There, the lustful teen pulled Sasuke further into their kiss, causing his eyes to open wide in surprise.

_Wow, he must really like this. Is this some fantasy of his or something?_

Of course, Sasuke wasn't exactly turned off by the situation himself. Ever since his body had come into contact with Naruto's, the Uchiha's head had been practically swimming as the blood pumped through his body from sheer excitement. The effects were evident down below as well, where Sasuke found himself hardening more than he thought possible. It was almost painful, but in a good way.

Still, Sasuke couldn't let Naruto think that he wasn't enjoying their little adventure in the shower, so he decided to do something with his own hands. Reaching around behind the blond mid-kiss, Sasuke placed his hands firmly on his boyfriend's smooth, bubble butt and squeezed.

As Sasuke expected, Naruto's mouth dropped open in surprise at the sudden contact. Taking advantage of the situation, the Uchiha slid his tongue into his boyfriend's mouth, gently tickling the other's tongue within.

_Much better…_

Naruto's widened eyes closed completely at the familiar feel of Sasuke's tongue, and he focused entirely on the kiss. Though their hands were still occupied – Naruto's behind Sasuke's head, and Sasuke's planted on the blond's butt – they managed to put their full attention, at least for a moment, into the tender exchange between their lips. They only explored each other's mouths for a moment, their tongues moving back and forth to make room for the other, but that brief minute was perfect. After having spent the whole morning pushing their boundaries physically, this simple kiss somehow made it all come full circle.

When Naruto pulled out of the kiss, then, Sasuke smiled. Normally he would've been mad at the blond for quitting so soon, but on that day it felt right. It'd been an exciting morning, and it was time to move on.

"Could you pass the soap, Sasuke?" the blond asked, indicating the bottle of shower gel beneath the showerhead.

"Sure."

Sasuke handed his boyfriend the bottle, who squeezed out a puddle into his hand. He then flashed the Uchiha a grin. "Now turn around."

"Why?" Sasuke asked, giving the blond a skeptical look.

"Because, I want to wash your back. Now turn around," Naruto replied, twirling his finger for emphasis.

Sasuke sighed and faced the shower spray, letting the hot water run down his face. He didn't like having to release Naruto so easily – not after he'd spent that whole morning admiring the vulpine boy's butt from afar.

_Something about that ass…_

Again, Sasuke felt himself blushing at the thought, but soon his mind was distracted as Naruto went to work on his back. The way Naruto moved his hands so slowly and deliberately along the Uchiha's bare backside, it almost felt like a massage. Sasuke moaned quietly, and Naruto slowed down even more, working up a nice lather.

"Does that feel good?" he asked, leaning over to whisper into Sasuke's ear.

"Lower," Sasuke ordered, ignoring Naruto's question altogether.

Naruto complied, traveling down and soaping up the Uchiha's back and sides as he went. Before long, all of Sasuke's back was covered in suds, and it was Naruto's turn to clamp his hands on his boyfriend's butt. He moved his hands in circles on both cheeks briefly, his chuckles audible over the running water, before moving back up to Sasuke's neck.

_Why'd he stop?_

"I have something else in mind," Naruto said, apparently having read Sasuke's mind.

With that, Naruto squirted another puddle of soap into his hand and reached his arms around to the Uchiha's front. There, the blond began to work Sasuke's chest into a lather, covering everything from the collar down to his upper torso. It felt incredible to Sasuke, especially when Naruto stopped by his new favorite spot: the nipples. Still, the blond didn't stay in one spot for long, and soon he had reached Sasuke's navel, which he circled a few times with his finger.

_What's he planning? Wait… why isn't he stopping? He couldn't be…_

Indeed, Naruto's hands were drifting further south, and Sasuke suddenly realized what the blond had been planning from the start. He had no intention of stopping him, either. As expected, Naruto's hands traveled down to the pelvic area, where he briefly rubbed the Uchiha's lower tummy, moving at a painfully slow pace.

Another twitch.

_Just get it over with!_

Before Naruto could budge another inch, though, there was a sudden knock at the door, snapping both him and Sasuke back to reality.

"Hey, Naruto! Could you and Sasuke hurry up in there? The rest of us would like to take a shower at some point today!"

_Damn you, Kiba…_

Naruto leaned over Sasuke's shoulder once more, whispering, "Guess they caught us.

Sasuke sighed, reaching down and removing the blond's hands from his crotch. "It's okay – they were bound to find out eventually. We'll just have to finish this some other time."

"All right…" Naruto pouted, crossing his arms defiantly. "You better not forget, though."

_Oh, I won't…_

Sasuke reached down and shut off the water, leaving only the sound of their bare feet slapping against the floor as he and Naruto exited the shower. They each reached for a towel and proceeded to dry off, taking their time to get every spot. By the time they finished, both of their erections had subsided, a fact that relieved Sasuke greatly.

_Even if they suspect what we were up to, I'd rather not give them any more evidence…_

Setting the damp towels back on the rack, Naruto and Sasuke stepped into their underwear and stepped out into the hallway, where they were greeted by a grinning Kiba.

"Have fun?" the Inuzuka asked, backing up to let the boyfriends out. He apparently hadn't dressed yet, either, as he was still in his black briefs.

"That's for us to know, and for you to never find out," Naruto replied, sticking his tongue out chilidishly as he passed.

Sasuke simply shrugged his shoulders and returned to the living room, where he found the rest of the guests were wide-awake. His clothes were sitting in a pile beside the couch, and he got dressed awkwardly, feeling he had the entire world staring at him. By the time he was ready, Naruto had also gotten fully dressed, and together they slumped down on the couch, each with a blush gracing their cheeks.

"Was he good to you, Uchiha?" Gaara asked from the floor, still wrapped up in his blanket from the night before.

"You tell anyone, and I'll kill you," Sasuke responded, shooting the redhead a glare. "That goes for the rest of you, too."

Shikamaru, Lee, and Choji all nodded in agreement, while Gaara simply chuckled. Satisfied, Sasuke slouched back, resting his head on Naruto's shoulder. He'd never live this down.

xxxxx

Sasuke left Naruto's apartment not long after their little make-out session in the shower. Everyone had showered, dressed, and eaten a bit of breakfast (mostly cereal), and it was generally decided that they should all go their separate ways for the day. Lee and Kiba had another track meet that day, which Naruto wanted to attend, while Shikamaru had plans to go cloud gazing with Choji, just to waste the day away. The only ones who didn't seem to have any plans were Gaara and Sasuke, and they simply decided to head home – it had been an exhausting night, and Sasuke, at least, was ready to spend a quiet day in his room.

So, after waving goodbye to the other partygoers, Sasuke started down the sidewalk for home, enjoying the feel of the morning sun on his face. To think that just a week before, he'd been walking in this same direction from Kakashi's apartment, only to stop by the track meet on a whim. It must've been fate that brought him to that meet – if he hadn't gone there and fought Gaara, he never would've been saved by Naruto. He never would've realized how much he cared for the blond – never would've shared a kiss later that night.

The Uchiha smiled. It wasn't like him to be so sentimental. He blamed it on the intense morning – it'd left him in a good mood. Of course, Sasuke knew that wouldn't last long – Itachi usually had Saturdays off, which meant he would be home, ready to harass Sasuke over his love life.

_Oh well… I guess it can't be helped…_

Thus, his hands tucked into his pockets, Sasuke strolled down the vacant sidewalks, gazing at the passing cars disinterestedly. Before long, he arrived at his familiar neighborhood, filled with enormous mansions and extensive lawns, all a lush, green and cut at a uniform height. It was disgusting, how perfect it all looked. Assuming any of the people in those mansions were like Itachi or Kisame, Sasuke knew they were by no means perfect. No, behind those perfect homes with their neat lawns and generally tidy atmosphere were alcoholics, wife beaters, and thieves, just like the rest of the world. There were probably even murderers hidden somewhere in that neighborhood, concealed by their mask of perfection. It made Sasuke sick.

_Murderers… like the one who stole my parents from me. People like Kyuubi… people who act only for themselves, not caring who they hurt along the way._

By the time these thoughts had passed through Sasuke's mind, he'd already arrived at this doorstep. Somehow he'd trudged through his neighborhood instinctively, as if by memory alone, and the feel of the cool, brass doorknob jarred him back to reality. Shaking his head, the Uchiha turned the knob and gently pushed open the door, hoping not to draw attention to himself. If he could make it up to his room without running into Itachi, it would be ideal.

After slipping inside and shutting the door behind him, though, Sasuke heard voices coming from the dining room, which brought him to an abrupt halt. One was Itachi's – that much was clear – but he'd never heard the other voice before. Tip-toeing through the foyer towards the dining room, Sasuke tried to get as close as possible to the conversation without getting caught. Taking a chance to peek around the corner, he found his brother and a man with long, white hair seated at the table, both eyeing each other coldly.

"So, Chief Jiraiya," Itachi said with forced politeness, taking a sip from his coffee. "What brings you by today? Just stopping in to say hello, are we?"

"It's been five years, Itachi," the older man replied, sipping from his coffee as well. "I was hoping you'd have some more information for us. Have you heard anything? Seen anything suspicious lately?"

"No, no – I'm afraid not," the elder Uchiha mused, stirring his drink absentmindedly. "Why? You don't think we're in danger here, do you?"

"You? No… I think _you're_ perfectly safe, Itachi. I just find it a little odd, you know? We've always suspected that your parents' murderer was from a competing company."

"Really? What makes you say that?"

"Well, it makes sense doesn't it?" Jiraiya asked, gesticulating with his free hand. "If, let's say, a company like Akatsuki could eliminate the top shareholders of the Uchiha Corporation, they could throw their competition into turmoil and force them to sell."

"An interesting theory," Itachi replied, taking another sip. "Have you investigated the Uchiha Corporation's former competitors?"

"Thoroughly. Especially Akatsuki – but they're clean. All of their employee's whereabouts are on record for that evening, and their alibis are solid. They're either innocent, or they've done a miraculous job of covering their asses," Jiraiya sighed and set his mug down on the table with a thud. "Which brings me to why I'm here. Since we couldn't find any evidence of foul play from other companies, and since there's been no attempt on your life, as the new owner of the company, we're beginning to think it was an inside job."

"Someone within the Uchiha Corporation? But my parents were loved by all. They paid their employees handsomely – why would anyone want them dead?"

"That's true – they were quite popular. However, we've heard some rumors that things were not going as well as they seemed financially. Apparently your parents were spending more than they had, and things were quickly spiraling out of control. Do you know anything about that?"

Itachi paused and, sighing, set his own mug down on the table. "Chief Jiraiya – my parents' hearts oftentimes got the better of their reason. They knew the Uchiha Corporation was losing ground to growing conglomerates like Akatsuki, but they couldn't afford to lay off workers or cut their salaries. After all, so many people's livelihood relied on that paycheck, and to take that away would be sentencing them to death."

"And how did you feel about that?" Jiraiya asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

"I thought they were fools," Itachi said simply, a slight smile crossing his lips. "While their intentions were noble, they should've realized that they couldn't have it all. If the company was to continue to provide for a few people, it would have to cut back, or else risk losing everything."

"What would you have done in their situation?"

"All these questions, Chief – I almost think this is an interrogation," Itachi chuckled. "Very well, I'll tell you what I would've done. I would've merged with Akatsuki. It's the only way I could've guaranteed a future for many of my employees, not to mention my children."

"Oh, you were afraid they were closing the door on your future?" Jiraiya asked, his eyes flashing with intrigue.

"Well, of course. The way things were going, there was a chance one of us would be cut off."

"So, in a way, their deaths worked in your favor?"

Itachi paused. "Chief Jiraiya – I've already talked with the police about my parents' deaths. It was an incredibly tragic and traumatic moment for both myself and Sasuke. I would gladly trade money for my family at any time, and I'm gravely offended that you would suggest otherwise. I merely did the best that I could under the circumstances and, yes, that involved merging with Akatsuki. Now, do you have any other questions, or have I been harassed enough?"

Throughout this entire speech, Itachi's tone remained calm and dignified, in spite of the delicate topic being discussed. Jiraiya seemed to take a hint at this point, though, and rose from his chair. "No, no. That'll do, for now. Please, give us a call if you see anything suspicious, though, won't you?"

"Gladly," the elder Uchiha replied, shaking the officer's extended hand.

With that, the two started for the foyer, and Sasuke realized he'd have to make a hasty retreat. Before he had time to sneak off to the nearest hiding place, though, he felt a large, rough hand grab his shoulder, jerking him to a halt.

"Hey, why if it isn't Sasuke. How are you, little guy?" Jiraiya asked, patting the younger Uchiha on the head.

Sasuke made no response, but simply frowned at the white-haired man. Itachi interfered, shooting Sasuke his trademark smirk. "You'll have to forgive my brother, Chief. You see, he just spent the night with his boyfriend, and I'm sure he's a little sore, if you catch my drift."

Jiraiya removed his hand and winked at the raven-haired teen. "Ah, I see. Well, you'd better rest up, then. Goodbye."

With that, Jiraiya stepped out the door, leaving a thoroughly embarrassed Sasuke and a delighted Itachi in his wake. "Why'd you have to tell him that?" Sasuke growled, his hands clenching into fists.

"Oh, was I wrong? No wonder you're so upset, then. I'll tell you what – the bathroom upstairs will be open if you need some… _release_."

Sasuke opted not to argue with his brother, but instead stormed up the stairs. Before he had reached the fifth step, though, Itachi stopped him once more. "Oh, and Sasuke, just forget that little conversation I had with the Chief, will you? Everything's under control."

Sasuke nodded and finished climbing the stairs, somehow knowing that everything was certainly _not_ under control.

xxxxx

Later that night, Kakashi Hatake found himself sitting alone at the bar in a single's club in downtown Konoha, staring wearily into his glass of punch. Around him, there were numerous couples – men and women – pairing up to dance and chat, but he simply couldn't bring himself to join them. Instead, he just sipped on his drink, questioning why he was even there.

"Hey, Kakashi!"

The silver-haired man turned his head to the side, where he found a burly man with a short beard grinning back at him, a cigarette poking out of his mouth. Kakashi turned back to his drink. "Evening, Asuma."

"So, you're finally putting yourself back on the market, huh? Well good for you!" Asuma said, nudging the other teacher with his elbow. "Hey, barkeep! Gimme a gin and tonic, will ya?"

The bartender prepared the drink and handed it to Asuma, who began to drink it eagerly. "Damn, that's good stuff. Now, why don't you tell me why you're looking so glum?"

"I don't know… I'm thinking I made a mistake coming here. I'm just not ready yet…"

"Well, I'll tell you why – it's because of that drink you got there! Who drinks punch when they go to the bar! You need to get some booze in your system. Hey, barkeep! Another gin and tonic for by buddy here."

"No!" Kakashi snapped, causing both Asuma and the bartender to freeze. Realizing his sudden slip, the silver-hair man rose from his stool and placed some bills on the bar. "Excuse me, Asuma. I'll see you Monday."

"S-sure thing," the bearded man replied before turning back to his drink.

Shaking his head, Kakashi stumbled out the door and sighed.

_Obito… why can't I just forget you?_


	21. I Only Kiss Your Shadow

21. I Only Kiss Your Shadow

Gaara Subakuno sat in his last class of the day Monday afternoon feeling unusually anxious. Not that anyone else could tell by the way the redhead sat quietly at his desk, his arms resting calmly on his desk. After all, it was Gaara – the demon from Suna, the monster who lurks in silence before striking in a bloodthirsty rage. Sure, they noticed the way Gaara's eyes were practically boring a hole through the student's head before him, and they were probably even suspicious. Some were beginning to whisper, saying that Gaara had finally found his next target.

They were wrong, of course. Gaara wasn't anxious due to an overwhelming hunger for blood. It was quite the opposite, actually.

He was in love.

It had been three days since the party at Naruto's apartment, and Gaara had spent those very three days struggling to rationalize the bizarre feelings he'd been having. Of course, the redhead knew Naruto was important to him. That was the reason why Gaara joined Naruto's group to begin with – so he could get close to the blond and learn more about him.

During the party, though, Gaara had finally realized that his feelings went beyond a simple adoration for Naruto. No, he _loved_ Naruto.

_At least… I think that's what it is. I haven't really loved someone before, but… what else could it be? I don't want to believe that anything but love could make me feel this way…_

Yes, it had been during the party – shortly after Akamaru had decided to pee on Gaara's shirt – that the redhead had come to this realization. It wasn't even so much what Naruto did that brought Gaara to this decision, either. If anything… it was Sasuke.

Sure, Gaara had never cared for the Uchiha before meeting Naruto. After all, Sasuke was a rich, cold-hearted, patronizing jerk who somehow had earned the love and adoration of most of the student body. It wasn't fair to think that he could just stroll right through life so easily, so Gaara had decided to teach the Uchiha what it meant to suffer.

After the fight with Naruto, though, Gaara's bitterness had only grown. While Naruto had earned the redhead's respect through his kind words and deeds, Sasuke had only appeared more unworthy. What did the Uchiha do to earn Naruto's love and devotion? Where was the justice in letting someone as selfless as Naruto waste his effort on a cold, insensitive prick like Sasuke?

_There isn't any justice, of course! That's why I asked Uchiha that question… to test him. If he really cared for Naruto, then he would've stepped in to protect Naruto, even if it cost him his own life. Even then, though, I knew what Uchiha's answer would be. He _does _love Naruto… it just took a while for him to realize it._

Gaara felt his heart sink. He knew it was useless – Naruto loved Sasuke, and Sasuke loved Naruto. Even though the Uchiha appeared to be cold and indifferent to his boyfriend's affection, it was all a façade. Deep down, beneath the surface, Sasuke couldn't deny his feelings for Naruto. And that was the problem – Gaara had misjudged Sasuke, and it killed him to admit it.

In reality, Sasuke was a genuinely good person. Gaara couldn't understand why the Uchiha would choose to hide that sympathetic character beneath a cold exterior – but, then again, how long had Gaara suppressed _his_ feelings? It had taken Naruto to awaken those dormant emotions – maybe Sasuke just needed little push himself?

Still, the problem remained – there was no room for Gaara in Naruto's love life. It didn't seem fair that the redhead couldn't even get a chance at love with Naruto, that Sasuke should, once again, waltz right through life unopposed. Even if Sasuke was worthy of Naruto's love, it didn't necessarily mean he was the best pick for the job.

_Which is why I have to see him today. I don't care if he rejects me… even if he never wants to see me again. I'd rather suffer the heartache of loss than spend my whole life wondering if I ever even had a chance._

"All right, class, that's all for today," Asuma announced as he fumbled in his pocket for his box of cigarettes. "Don't forget to your homework tonight is problems 1-10 in the book, okay?"

There were numerous grumbles that sounded somewhat similar to "okay," followed by the shuffling of feet as the students shuffled out the door. For the first time in a while, Gaara actually led the pack, his backpack slung over his shoulder as he rushed out the door. Knowing Naruto, he'd only have a few minutes to catch the blond before he left the building.

Hurrying down the hall, the redhead was pleased to see Naruto's vibrant, yellow locks shining over the heads of his peers by his locker. Taking a deep breath, Gaara walked to the vulpine boy's side and tapped him once on the shoulder. Naruto spun around in shock, only to breathe a sigh of relief when he saw Gaara's green eyes staring back at him.

"Oh, it's just you, Gaara. What's up?" the blond asked as he packed his books into his backpack.

"We need to talk," Gaara said simply, trying not to avert his eyes.

"Really? About what?" Naruto asked before being struck with an idea. "Wait! You want to return that shirt, right? I already told you, it's no problem."

"It's not that," Gaara interrupted flatly.

"Well, what's the deal, then?"

"I can't talk about it here," the redhead replied, glancing at the crowd of passing students. "It's private."

"Hmm… I'll tell you what – Kiba has track practice after school today. We'll have the apartment to ourselves, so we can talk there," Naruto said with a grin as he slammed his locker shut.

Gaara considered the proposal for a moment. He really hadn't thought of a place for the two of them to meet, but he wasn't sure if going to Naruto's apartment was a good idea. After all, he'd probably be too distracted thinking of what Naruto and Sasuke had done a few days before – or, at least what he thought they'd done. Sasuke certainly had wanted them to keep quiet about it, at least.

Then again, the only other place where they could have some semblance of privacy would be Gaara's house, and he knew they'd only end up being pestered by Temari and Kankuro.

"Fine. Let's go," Gaara concluded with a single nod of his head.

The walk to Naruto's apartment was, needless to say, awkward for both teens. For Gaara, it was fifteen minutes of anxiety as he tried to figure out what exactly he was going to say to the blond, while trying to not to make things more suspicious than they already were. As for Naruto, he was forced to try and make conversation with one of the most anti-social guys at Konoha High, which was quite an obstacle for even Naruto to overcome.

"So, Gaara… have fun at the party last weekend?"

"Yes."

"I see… well, sorry again about Akamaru. You know he did the exact same thing to me the first time we met? I think it's his way of saying hello, you know?"

"Is that so?"

"Gaara! Watch out! There's a car coming…"

"If he hits me, he dies."

Things continued in this manner the entire trip. Naruto would ask some simple question, and Gaara would give a short, unenthusiastic response. Sure, the redhead knew Naruto was only trying his best, but he didn't want to get wrapped up in petty small talk when there was something far more important on his mind. As they drew closer to Naruto's apartment, however, this tension only grew worse. Gaara felt a pounding sensation in his head as he felt himself begin to panic, while Naruto became increasingly uncomfortable trying to make conversation.

_Maybe I should head back now. I can just say I forgot something… no, what am I thinking? He'd just get suspicious. This is my chance. I have to tell him…_

"Alrighty then! Here we are!" Naruto announced with a nervous chuckle as he fiddled with his keys.

"This is it," Gaara concurred in his distant tone.

After unlocking the door, Naruto pushed it inward and stepped inside, where he kicked off his shoes and tossed his backpack on the floor. "What a long day! I hate Mondays."

"I know how you feel," the redhead lied, setting his own backpack on the ground.

"Say, you want something to eat? We probably have cookies or something lying around here…" Naruto asked as he stepped into the kitchen.

"I'm fine," Gaara replied. "If you don't mind, I'd actually like to get right to business."

Glancing back over his shoulder, Naruto froze with a bag of potato chips in his hand as he considered Gaara's proposal. After only a moment's hesitation, however, he placed the snack back in the cupboard and nodded. "Sure. We'll talk on the couch."

Following Naruto's, Gaara stepped into the living room and slowly sat down on the sofa, while the blond plopped down on the other end, sitting with his legs resting on the middle cushion. Once they were both situated, Naruto decided to make the first move. "So, what's up?"

"Do you love Uchiha?" Gaara asked bluntly. Both he and the other teen were taken aback by the question.

"Well, of course!" Naruto replied with a laugh as he scratched his cheek sheepishly. "I mean, he's my boyfriend, after all."

"I know that… but is he the one?"

Naruto considered this for a moment, resting his head on one of the throw pillows. "That's a tough one. Can you ever really be sure that you've found the one person who can bring you true happiness? I suppose there's always the possibility of meeting someone else…"

"So there's a chance you'd leave Uchiha if you found the right person?" Gaara asked, trying to hide the hopefulness in his voice.

"No," Naruto responded simply, his eyes fixed on the ceiling. "Sasuke's too important for me to just leave him like that."

"But, you said…"

"I know – there's always the chance that there's someone better out there, but that doesn't mean I'd leave Sasuke," the blond said, running a hand through his hair in thought. "I don't know if this makes any sense, but he's the first person I've ever felt this way about. Sure, I've had crushes on people, but that wasn't love. I got over Sakura rejecting me time after time, but… I think Sasuke will stay with me forever."

Gaara remained silent and simply stared into the other teen's blue eyes as his fears were confirmed. "So he _is_ the one."

"Well, if that's what being the one is, then yes. Even if Sasuke and I go our separate ways, I'll always remember him," Naruto concluded with a sigh before sitting up suddenly. "Why are you asking me all this, anyway?"

_Took him long enough…_

"I'll tell you, but you'll have to close your eyes first."

Naruto shot the redhead a skeptical look. "What are you planning?"

"Just close your eyes. I need to figure something out for myself," Gaara said almost pleadingly.

After hesitating for just a second, Naruto complied and closed his eyes, crossing his arms over his chest impatiently. Seeing this, Gaara took a deep breath and moved forward. Leaning in, the redhead parted his lips ever so slightly and, briefly, planted a kiss on his beloved blond.

It barely lasted a second, but it was enough for Gaara. He'd wanted nothing more than to experience Naruto for himself, to feel what Sasuke felt every time they were together, and somehow Gaara had found it in that momentary connection. No sooner had the redhead's lips graced Naruto's, however, than the blond's eyes shot open. He kicked Gaara off the couch and into a nearby end table, where he knocked over a lamp. There was a loud crack as the lamp hit the floor and the light bulb shattered, sending small pieces of glass flying into the air.

"What the hell are you doing, Gaara?" Naruto asked, wiping his lips with his sleeve as he rose from the couch. "Didn't I just tell you that I love Sasuke?"

"I had to know what it was like," Gaara asked from the carpet. He glanced down at this hand, and found it was bleeding. He felt no pain. "Uchiha's not the only one who loves you."

"Wait… so, when you said you were rivals…"

Gaara nodded. "I know I can't possibly take you away from Uchiha, but I had to make my feelings known. I'll understand if you never want to see me again."

"I don't hate you, Gaara," Naruto said, extending a hand to the fallen redhead. "I'm mad as hell at you, but I don't hate you."

_He doesn't? What's wrong with this guy?_

"Look, I can't help it if you have feelings for me," the blond continued as he pulled Gaara to his feet. "The same goes for you, though. I love Sasuke, and you can't make me change my mind just by kissing me."

"I know."

"Then why'd you do it?"

It was a good question. Gaara considered it a moment before sighing. "I just wanted to know what it was like. I wanted to feel what Uchiha feels whenever he's with you, if only for a moment."

"Well, I hate to break it to you, but you'll never know what that's like," Naruto said, placing a hand on the redhead's shoulder consolingly. "A kiss is more than two people locking lips – it's an expression of the feelings they have for each other. Unless you find someone who shares those feelings and can return them, then you might as well be kissing a pillow or something."

"I'm not an idiot," Gaara snapped as he slapped the blond's hand away. "I know I could never feel what Uchiha must feel, because I'll never be able to replace him. But still, I wanted to get as close as I could. I couldn't just leave with nothing."

Naruto stared at the redhead, recognizing for the first time the frustration in Gaara's eyes. Never before had the blond seen such obvious emotion in the other teen – it made him uncomfortable to think he was making Gaara seem at least somewhat vulnerable. Rather than stand in silence, though, Naruto scratched his head and tried to make sense of the whole situation. "Look… I didn't mean to offend you or anything. It's just… well, I heard you'd never loved anything but yourself before we met."

"That's true," Gaara confessed with a nod. He brushed a hand across the tattoo on his forehead, the kanji 'ai.' "But, even though I never cared about anyone else, I always knew exactly what love was."

"I don't understand…"

"Let me explain," the redhead said as he sat back down on the couch. His hand was still bleeding. "Ever since I was born, I've been despised by my family. My mom died giving birth to me, so I've always been blamed for her death. They took me in and raised me, of course, but I've never really belonged. There's always been bitterness in my father's voice, and my siblings, though they act like they care for me, have always associated me with the loss of our mom.

"I knew something was wrong. I could see how other families acted, how there was always this general happiness about them. How they all had moms. Then I noticed how my father treated my brother and sister. Even though he maintained his cold exterior, he almost seemed gentle around them. I knew it was my fault. The reason he was so unhappy, the reason Kankuro and Temari would cry themselves to sleep – I was the one that robbed them of their joy. Sure, my siblings cared for me, but I knew what they were thinking. They'd traded their mother for a little brother, an added burden. I was the short straw, and they got stuck with it."

"Gaara, I'm sure Temari and Kankuro…"

"I'm sure they do too, Naruto," Gaara interrupted, sounding somewhat irritated. "At least, they do now. They've had time to adjust – but I'm sure they still wonder from time to time what life would be like if it was the other way around. What if she'd lived, and I was gone instead. They'd probably be happier. My father would be, at least. He wouldn't have the added stress of providing for his family and raising his kids on his own.

"That was how I grew up, though – knowing nobody would love me, because I would always be the one who destroyed what love they once had. I saw how it crippled them, that loss, and so I became determined not to feel anything of the sort. I killed my emotions then – or, at least, I thought I did. For sixteen years, I managed to survive as a coldhearted killer, but now… just look at me! I'm talking to you about love…"

Naruto was silent for a moment. "I'm sorry, Gaara. I didn't know…"

"It's fine. I shouldn't have told you anyway. Just… don't try to trivialize my feelings. Even if I've never loved someone before, I still know what love is," Gaara continued, turning his head to the side in shame. "And since I'll never be able to take Uchiha's place, I decided to kiss you just once before giving up on love altogether."

"No!"

Gaara was stunned. No sooner had the redhead risen off the couch and started for the door, than he was cut off by a fuming Naruto, who placed both hands firmly on Gaara's shoulders.

"You can't give up on finding happiness just because I'm already taken, Gaara," Naruto said, almost as if he was scolding the other teen. "You said it yourself – there's always the possibility that you'll find someone better out there."

"But it's like you and Uchiha – even if I find someone new, I'll never be able to stop thinking of you…"

"So what? You shouldn't forget the people you love! But that doesn't mean you have to suffer the rest of your life! You have to try and move on and try to find love with someone else," Naruto began before sighing. "Look, if me and Sasuke broke up, I'd be devastated. I probably wouldn't get over it for quite some time, but eventually I'd try to find someone new. Even though that person could never replace Sasuke, I know I'd be happier with _someone_ than living the rest of my life alone."

"So… I don't have any chance with you, then?"

"Not with things the way they are. I'm sorry," Naruto continued, dropping his hands to his side. "I don't want to let this ruin our friendship, though. I still care about you, Gaara – just… not in the same way you care for me, I guess."

That hurt. Gaara knew the vulpine boy was trying his best to spare his feelings, but hearing that definitive rejection was simply painful. He glanced down at his hand – it was still bleeding. "I understand. I'll leave now."

"Are you gonna be okay? You can stay for a bit if you want…"

"No. It's better this way," the redhead sighed as he picked his backpack off the floor. He heard a crunch as he stepped on a piece of the shattered light bulb. "Sorry about the mess."

"It's fine. See you at lunch tomorrow?" Naruto asked, following the other teen to the door.

"Sure," Gaara replied, a trace of a smile on his lips. With a bittersweet feeling in his heart, the redhead turned his back on Naruto's apartment and sighed.

_Naruto Uzumaki… will you ever cease to amaze me?_

xxxxx

Shikamaru Nara stood on the front porch of a quaint, white, two-story house, his legs shaking anxiously. He had no idea what had possessed him to come to the Subakuno residence – one moment he had been heading home, intending to fall asleep on the couch, the next he was marching off in the complete opposite direction. Maybe he'd wanted to go this particular house ever since the party Friday night, and it was only the sight of Gaara heading towards Naruto's apartment that triggered his reaction.

_Who am I kidding? That's exactly what it was. I saw my chance and jumped on it. But now…_

Shikamaru stared up at the door and raised his finger towards the bell. He stopped just after brushing the button and dropped his hand back to his side in defeat. Yes, he'd found the perfect opportunity to act now that Gaara was absent – that was supposed to be the hard part. But now that the lazy genius had finally reached his destination, he found it next to impossible to ring the doorbell.

_What the hell am I doing here, anyway? Yes, she was hot – but I've seen plenty of attractive girls before. Why do I suddenly feel the urge to ask her out, when I've only talked to her twice?_

Shaking his head, the Nara reached into his pants pocket and withdrew a pack of cigarettes. As he flicked one of the smokes from the bottom of the box, he felt a wave of shame rush over him. He hated smoking – the fumes always made his eyes water, and it wasn't exactly a healthy habit either – but he found it settled his nerves when things got tense. To think that he'd get so worked up over a girl, however, was just disgusting.

_I've gotta get a hold of myself. She's just a girl! What does she have that I don't… aside from the obvious. Just treat her like a human being…_

His hand shaking somewhat, Shikamaru lit his cigarette with the small flame of his Zippo. He puffed on the cigarette for a moment, watching the smoke rise up into the afternoon sun. It was like he was making his own little clouds to ride the winds into eternity. A calming thought. He'd always envied the clouds – the way they just floated along wherever the wind took them.

_They never have to worry about asking girls out or anything. Oh, to have that kind of life…_

With a sigh, Shikamaru flicked the remaining butt of his cigarette off into the nearby bushes and turned to face the door. The smoke had helped ease his anxiety, at least somewhat. He could do this. Stepping forward, the Nara raised his finger once again and prepared to ring the bell. His heart pounding in his ears, he pushed the button down.

All the world seemed to go silent save for the faint chime within the building. Shikamaru waited with bated breath. Seconds passed, and yet he waited. And waited.

And waited.

He checked his watch – it'd been well over a minute. Groaning at his bad luck, the Nara turned to head home, only to bump into a particular blonde, who was standing on the front steps with a satisfied smirk.

"Geez! Where did you… how did you…" Shikamaru started between panicked breaths. Once he'd finally calmed down, the Nara spoke with a sense of forced dignity. "How long have you been here?"

Temari grinned and playfully patted the lazy genius' cheek. "Long enough to know you have a bad smoking habit, Shika."

_That long? How didn't I notice her? Was I really that out of it?_

"You could've said something," the Nara said defensively.

"Oh, I know. But that wouldn't be much fun now, would it?" Temari continued with a playful giggle. "I gotta say, though, I almost didn't recognize you at first with your pants on."

"Same goes for you."

"Hmm… touché, Shika. So tell me, what brings you here, today? Looking for Gaara again?" the blonde asked as she pulled a stick of gum from her pocket. She chomped on it a few times and blew a large bubble, which she soon popped with her tongue.

"No, not today. I was actually looking for you," Shikamaru admitted, turning his head away from the girl bashfully.

"For me? What for?" Temari asked coyly.

_Get a hold of yourself, Shikamaru! She already knows what you're gonna say, so just hurry up and say it!_

"To tell you the truth, I was… well, I was hoping you'd… would you do me the honor," the Nara stumbled, scratching the back of his head nervously as he spoke. "Will you go out with me?"

Temari eyed him for a moment, the chomping of her gum slowing down as she considered the proposal. A smile crossed her lips. "All right, Shika – under one condition. You put a stop to that nasty smoking habit of yours."

Shikamaru reached into his pocket and removed his pack of cigarettes, which he held out to the blonde. "Take 'em. I never cared for them to begin with."

Temari took the cigarettes with a laugh. "You're not even gonna put up a fight? It's too easy! Oh, I'm gonna have fun with you, Shika."

Leaning forward, Temari planted a quick kiss on the Nara's forehead before starting past him for the house. There, she turned and gave a flirtatious wink.

"Meet me at the Konoha Theater Friday night at eight o'clock. Don't be late."

Shikamaru gave no response, but remained completely motionless on the porch as he heard the door shut behind him. He was dumbstruck.

_What the hell just happened?_

Glancing back at the door, the Nara smiled. He'd secured a date with Temari, and all it had cost him was his cigarettes. Not a bad deal, all things considered. Of course, there was still the problem of Gaara, but Shikamaru decided he'd cross that bridge when he got to it.

Little did he know it would be much sooner than expected.

xxxxx

Gaara walked down the streets of Konoha towards home feeling oddly content. Sure, he now knew it would be impossible for him to be with Naruto, but for some reason he felt there was hope. Like the blond had said, even if Gaara loved Naruto till the end of time, it didn't mean he couldn't find someone else to spend his life with. Sure, no one could _replace_ Naruto, but Gaara felt there was room enough in his heart for more than one person.

_I really need to do something about this sappy, sentimental crap. It's starting to cramp my style._

Gaara chuckled. He hated to admit it, but somehow, in just the week or so he'd known Naruto, the blond had changed him. Gaara knew exactly what the "old him" would've done in his current predicament. If Sasuke already had a hold on Naruto, then the only option would've been to eliminate the competition. Threats, physical harm, and unfortunate "accident" – they were all cards the redhead had played at one point or another, whether for personal gain or just sheer amusement.

Now, though, Gaara knew he'd rather see Naruto happy with someone else than have a miserable Naruto all to himself. In fact, he wasn't even sure he could lay a hand on Sasuke if he wanted to. As his rival in love, the Uchiha had gained a great deal of respect in Gaara's eyes. Yes, Gaara would love to take Sasuke's place beside Naruto, but he was content knowing his precious blond was with such a worthy adversary. Even though Sasuke could be a cold bastard, he genuinely cared for Naruto, and that was all Gaara could possibly hope for.

_That's all well and good, but… can I actually find another? I want to believe in what you've said, Naruto – that there's always hope in loving again – but it's just not that simple…_

And so Gaara went, vacillating between optimism and depression with his mind always focused on Naruto. He began to wonder if he would've been better off if he'd never even met the blond. No sooner had this crossed the redhead's mind, however, than he heard a loud voice behind him, which stopped him in his tracks.

"Oh! Gaara! Wait up!"

_That energy… could it be?_

Turning his head to the side hopefully, Gaara's dreams were quickly shattered when a green blur came to a screeching halt a few feet before him. His heart sank. "Lee, was it?"

"Oh, good! You remembered!" Lee exclaimed with a grin. "I was just out running laps around the park when I saw you. What're you doing here? Don't you live on the other side of town?"

Gaara sighed – why was he so damn loud? "I'm just heading home. I had to stop and talk to Naruto for a bit."

"Naruto? Really? Did you forget something at the party?" Lee began, before suddenly spotting the redhead's bloody hand. "You're injured! Did you and Naruto have another fight?"

Gaara hesitated and looked at his hand.. "No, not exactly. It was an accident."

"Well… here, let me fix you up," Konoha's green beast offered, pulling the redhead over to a nearby bench by his good wrist

For whatever reason, Gaara decided not to offer any resistance. Maybe being rejected by Naruto drained him of all his energy, or maybe he just didn't want to make a scene. In any case, he followed Lee to the bench, where the mop-topped teen reached into his pocket. After searching for a moment, he pulled out a cloth bandage, which he began to wrap around Gaara's wound.

"Gai-sensei always says to be prepared for injuries like this. You never know when you'll find trouble in the springtime of youth!"

"I see," Gaara said simply as he watched the other teen work. There was a certain gentleness to Lee's movements, a kindness that seemed too sincere to be faked. More importantly, there was no fear or distrust. To Lee, Gaara was just another person who, at that moment, needed his help.

_Why do I feel like I can trust him… I barely even know this guy…_

"Lee… have you ever been in love?"

_My god, did I actually say that? What have you done to me, Naruto?_

Lee continued working on Gaara's wound, looping the bandage between the redhead's thumb and forefinger. "Is this about Naruto?"

"Possibly," Gaara replied, a hint of depression in his voice. "I might just be curious."

"Well, to tell you the truth, I'm also a victim of unrequited love."

_Also? So he saw right through me. He's not as dumb as he looks…_

"Who was it?" the redhead asked, before realizing how blunt he sounded. "Nevermind, it's probably personal…"

"It was Sakura. I would've given my life for her… but I never stood a chance. She only has eyes for Sasuke."

_Just like Naruto…_

"How can you stand it? Doesn't it hurt, knowing you can never have her?"

Lee quickly tied a knot with the bandage, using his teeth to hold it in place, and the looked down at his work in satisfaction. "Of course it hurts – I still feel a little depressed every time I see her fawning over Sasuke – but I can't let it keep me down. What's the point of wasting your youth moping over what can't be helped?"

"But what keeps you going? Aren't you afraid you'll never love someone the same way again?" Gaara asked, meeting Lee's big, owl-like eyes.

"I don't worry about it, because I know I'll never love someone the same way I love Sakura. You can't just take the feelings you have for someone and paste them on someone else – it doesn't work like that. I'll never feel about anyone else the same way I feel about Sakura, but that doesn't mean I can't find love elsewhere. I just have to keep searching – anything is possible with enough effort, right?" Lee grinned and pumped his fist in front of his face.

Gaara found himself smiling in spite of himself. That enthusiasm – it was like Naruto's energy on steroids. Both were such kind, caring spirits, too…

_What am I thinking? He's not Naruto! This is Rock Lee – he worships Gai, he wears that green unitard every day… but, then again, he did stop to help me. We haven't even talked much, but he trusted me nevertheless. He's not Naruto, but maybe that's not a bad thing._

"How's the bandage feel?" Lee asked, patting the redhead's hand lightly.

"What? Oh, it's fine," Gaara said, flexing his fingers tentatively. "Thank you."

"It looked like it was bleeding pretty bad. Let me walk you home, at least."

Gaara turned his head to the side. "If you insist."

"Great! This'll make up for that last lap I missed, too!"

With that, Lee latched onto Gaara's good wrist and began running towards the redhead's house. Gaara wasn't sure exactly how Lee knew where he lived, but he was too busy trying to keep up with the mop-topped teen to care. As they ran along, Gaara felt himself growing winded, while Lee's breathing remained completely steady. It was impressive, really – Gaara had always considered himself to be a strong fighter and athlete, but next to Lee his stamina appeared weak.

_I'd probably have to fight dirty to beat him – take his leg out or something…_

Gaara shook the thought from his head. Why would he even consider that in the first place? It must've been a remnant of the "old Gaara" – the one who thought of at least three different ways to kill each person he met. He shuddered.

"Hey! Is that Shikamaru?" Lee asked, pointing forward with his free hand.

The redhead snapped out of his reverie and looked ahead to find a teen with black hair in the shape of a pineapple headed their way. He had his hands in his pockets and was staring up at the clouds, a content look on his face. As they drew closer, Gaara found the teen was blushing.

_Gotcha…_

"Well, well – if it isn't Shikamaru," Gaara began between breaths as he and Lee came to a halt. "Let me guess – decided to pay my sister a visit while I was away?"

Shikamaru's smile vanished in an instant, replaced by a look of dread. "No – I was just in the neighborhood, that's all."

"Yeah, sure. So when are you two going out?"

"We're not g–"

"Look, if you won't tell me the truth, I'll just get it from my sister. And if I find out you lied to me, I'll really make life hard for you," Gaara continued, stepping towards the Nara dangerously.

Shikamaru stuttered for a moment as he tried to find a way to talk himself out of the situation. When it became clear he was trapped, however, he conceded with a sigh. "All right – we're going to see a movie Friday night. Satisfied?"

"Of course," Gaara said simply as he walked past the Nara. "Be good to her, now. Come along, Lee."

Nodding quickly to Shikamaru, Lee ran after Gaara, and the two resumed their journey to the Subakuno residence. Once Shikamaru was out of earshot, Lee leaned towards the redhead and whispered, "What was that about?"

"Oh, nothing. I just want Shikamaru to know a little fear is all."

"You're not actually going to hurt him or anything, are you?"

"No, of course not," Gaara laughed, glancing back at the vanishing Nara. "But I don't want him to feel he can walk all over me, either. If he wants to date my sister, I want him to consider the consequences of his actions. If Temari gets hurt in any way… well, I'm sure you can guess what I'd do."

Lee gulped.

They continued running towards Gaara's house in silence, and in a matter of minutes they arrived on the redhead's doorstep. Both were winded at this point, and they took a moment to sit down on the stairs and catch their breath.

"So, this is your house, huh?" Lee asked awkwardly, trying to break the silence.

"Yeah. I've lived here all my life, I guess," Gaara replied, wiping some sweat from his brow.

The silence continued. Gaara stared down at his hands, trying to think of what he should do. The bloody bandage on his right hand seemed to stare back at him, urging him on.

_He did help me out… it's the least I can do…_

"Would you like to come inside for a drink or something?" the redhead asked, glancing over at Lee.

Lee met Gaara's gaze, a warm smile spreading over his face. "Sure."

Without another word, both teens rose off the stairs and walked into the house. Neither one left for several hours.


	22. Let Your Honesty Shine

22. Let Your Honesty Shine

Iruka Umino sat at his desk at Mizu Middle School that Wednesday, grading papers while intermittently checking emails. His current paper was covered in scribbles – grammatical errors, misspellings, and one paragraph that ended mid-sentence. He sighed and wrote a large "D" at the top of the page before moving on.

It wasn't that he didn't care about his job anymore – he wanted nothing more than to see these kids succeed. The problem was getting his students motivated. Teaching remedial English at a school that focused primarily on athletics didn't exactly give him much to work with, and in spite of Iruka's best efforts to teach the kids the wonders of reading and writing, they continued to turn in sub-par papers.

Turning back to his computer monitor, desperate to put off reading yet another terrible essay on Shakespeare, Iruka was surprised to find a new email sitting in his inbox. It's subject read "URGENT," and it had been sent by Principal Danzo himself.

"What does he want now?" Iruka asked, taking a sip of his coffee as he clicked open the email. " 'Meet me in my office. Now.' I suppose people don't say please when they ask for things anymore…"

Shoving the papers into his briefcase and shutting down his computer, Iruka started out of the room, turning off the lights as he exited. Locking the door behind him, the teacher headed down the empty hall grumbling to himself.

"He's lucky I'm still here. Most teachers leave almost as soon as the students do…"

Soon, Iruka was standing outside Principal Danzo's office, where he knocked once on the door. Almost immediately, a gruff voice on the inside called out, "Come in."

Tentatively pushing the door open, Iruka poked his head inside and forced a smile. "You wanted to see me, sir?"

"Have a seat, Iruka," the principal replied, motioning towards an open chair.

Iruka nodded and plopped down on the worn, leather seat, staring intently at the old man before him. He'd always found Danzo to be a disgusting person – not only did he have a grating personality and stubborn views on education, but he actually looked frightening. Children often ran as soon as they saw the old man limp along with his cane, his left arm dangling limp at his side. Half the man's face was covered with bandages, as well, giving him the appearance of a mummy. How someone like him had become principal always amazed Iruka.

"I think it's high time we discuss your future here in the Mizu school district, Iruka," Danzo stated flatly, leaning back in his chair. "Tell me, what have done in the past few years that sets you apart from the rest of the school?"

"Not as much as I would've liked, I'll admit," Iruka responded, scratching the back of his head nervously. "I have certainly tried to teach these kids English, but I get the feeling that they just don't want to learn."

"No child _wants_ to learn, Iruka. You have to make a child learn, beat the information into their skull if you have to, so long as they remember it in the future."

"Principal Danzo, with all due respect, I feel it's more important for a child to have the _desire_ to learn than to simply be able to regurgitate information…"

"That's enough!" Danzo snapped, pounding his right fist on the table. "I'm sure Principal Sarutobi taught you that nonsense back when he was still corrupting our youth, but now he's gone. He had a lot of influence, and we're very sad to have lost him, but I can tell you it's for the best. His ideals were weak – they relied too much on emotion, and not enough on hard facts."

"Principal Sarutobi was a great man, and our school greatly benefited when he was in charge."

"Coincidence! Sarutobi was a lucky man, but not much more. He let emotion cloud his judgment. The fact is, if our school is going to receive more funds, then we'll have to improve the average grade level of our students. That means we'll have to do away with this wishy-washy business of Sarutobi's time, and reintroduce disciplined education to our students."

"You can't just make someone learn something! Remember the Chinese proverb 'Tell me and I'll forget; show me and I may remember; involve me, and I'll understand.' We have to try and find a way to get these students interested in what we're teaching."

"I don't _have_ to do anything. It's my school, and I'll implement whatever policies I wish in order to lead it in the proper direction. Do I make myself clear?"

There was silence. Both men had remained in their seats, staring each other down as their voices grew louder and louder. Now, though, Iruka had nothing to say – he was trapped. In the end, it was Danzo's decision. "I understand, sir."

"Good. Before we get the students' grades up, however, I'll have to make some cuts in the budget – the government won't give us any extra money for the time being," Danzo continued calmly as he picked up some papers from his desk. "Which brings me to why I called you down here. As of today, you are no longer a teacher at Mizu Middle School."

Iruka was stunned. He felt his blood run cold as Danzo smirked. "You mean… I'm fired?"

"Fired? No – you've done a great job. The fact of the matter is, though, that we can't afford to have so many different English classes. We'll be combining the remedial English students with the normal-paced students."

"But… it's the beginning of the school year. Where am I going to find another job now?"

"That's not my problem, Iruka. Now, you have today to pack up anything you might have in the school and vacate the premises," Danzo said, stapling two papers together forcefully.

Iruka rose, his heart pounding in his chest. What was he going to do? How could he possibly pay for Naruto's schooling now? What about the rent? They were barely getting by as things were… and now he didn't even have a job? It wasn't fair! Just before stepping out the door, the former teacher turned to glare at his boss. "You know, Principal Sarutobi would never have allowed this."

"Oh, I'm sure. Good day, Iruka."

With that, Iruka stepped out of the office, tears of frustration in his eyes. What was he going to tell Naruto?

xxxxx

Sasuke sat at the lunch table that day, feeling strangely uncomfortable. For the past two days he had noticed that something was off, but he couldn't quite pinpoint what it was. Naruto hadn't been nearly as talkative, and whenever he met the Uchiha's eyes, he just looked away, almost as if he was ashamed of something.

_Is it what we did in the shower the other day? I didn't picture Naruto as the bashful type… no, there must be something else…_

Not only did Naruto have to have another reason for acting so strangely, but Sasuke knew, somehow, that his boyfriend's behavior was not the only thing bothering him. There was something else, as well – something at their table. Kiba was acting like his usual self, shouting unnecessarily loudly and trying to bite off half a hamburger at once. Choji seemed to be the same too, just quietly munching away on his chips. Shikamaru was avoiding Gaara, obviously – they were sitting on opposite ends of the table, and the Nara turned a deep shade of red whenever he met the other's gaze. Gaara wasn't acting so normal himself – he'd opted to sit on the other side of the table, leaving Sasuke and Naruto to themselves. Instead, the redhead was wedged between Kiba and Lee. It was too strange and sudden a change to be a coincidence.

_Okay, Shikamaru's bothered by Gaara because of what happened with Temari – that much is obvious. But Gaara… why would he leave Naruto all of a sudden? Something must've happened between them – that's why Naruto's been acting so strangely. Did Gaara make a move when I had my guard down? Did he threaten to blackmail Naruto or something? That bastard… if he does _anything_ to hurt him, so help me…_

"Sasuke! _There_ you are!"

The Uchiha snapped out of his reverie and spun around on his seat to find Ino and Sakura looming over him, their eyes glimmering with hunger. "What do you want?"

"What do you mean, 'what do we want?' We came to see you, of course! Everyone's been so depressed the past few days – it's like you've completely abandoned us!" Ino squealed, throwing her arms around her beloved.

"Is that so?" Sasuke replied with a roll of his eyes. "Why did you wait so long to express your sorrow?'

"Well, the truth is, we thought you were only hanging out with Naruto because of that project. I know you got stuck with him, so I told everyone to leave you alone while you worked on it. After all, it was probably hard enough without your fan club breathing down your neck," Sakura explained, nodding her head approvingly.

_She's not as dumb as she looks… I mean, she's still dumb, just not as much as she looks…_

"Yeah, Little Miss Forehead's right – it wouldn't be fair to be pressuring you into dates when you had _Naruto _to deal with. But still… now that the project's over, we're just a little curious," Ino continued, pushing Sakura out of the way.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow, almost daring Ino to continue. "Yes?"

"Well, why are you still hanging out with them?" the blonde said simply, extending a hand towards the rest of the table in disgust.

_How much does she know? Did Gaara already say something to them? Better play it safe…_

"They're my friends," Sasuke said calmly, taking a sip of his soda.

"Friends? But they're… well, them!" Ino exclaimed, her eyes wide with disbelief.

"Is that a problem?

Ino was flabbergasted, sputtering random syllables as she tried to comprehend this bizarre turn of events. "But… and… Nar- you? I…"

"Let's go, Ino-pig. If Naruto's Sasuke's friend, then that's all there is to it," Sakura interrupted, dragging the other girl back by the ponytail. "Sorry to disturb your lunch, Sasuke."

With that, the two girls left, arguing loudly with one another as they disappeared into the crowded cafeteria. Sasuke eyed Sakura suspiciously as she walked away, however, feeling that everything had ended far too smoothly.

_She knows something… not much, but she's suspicious. I'll have to keep an eye on her…_

"Well, that shut them up," Choji commented with a grin before shoving another handful of chips into his mouth.

"They were bound to find out sooner or later," Sasuke replied, shrugging his shoulders.

The rest of the lunch period was awkward and generally quiet. Kiba tried to carry on a conversation with those around him, but it was an uphill battle – both Naruto and Gaara offered only half-hearted, monosyllabic responses. It was starting to get on Sasuke's nerves – what the hell was going on?

Moments later, the lunch bell rang, and the students began to shuffle out of the cafeteria like zombies. Sasuke, however, marched right over to his boyfriend and placed a firm hand on his shoulder, bringing the blond to an abrupt halt. Once the herd of students passed by, the Uchiha walked in front of Naruto and stared him straight in the eye.

"Do you want to tell me what's going on?"

Naruto gazed at the floor a few feet to the right. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"You know_ exactly_ what I'm talking about. Something happened between you and Gaara, didn't it?" Sasuke asked, staring intently at the other teen. "Well, am I right?"

"Look, it's nothing, okay? It's something we need to work out ourselves…"

"Naruto, you know you can tell me anything, right? Isn't that what being in a relationship's all about? Trusting each other?"

"This is different!" Naruto snapped, meeting the Uchiha's eyes almost pleadingly. "Just… drop it, all right?"

With that, Naruto started to walk past Sasuke, but was brought to a halt when the raven-haired teen spoke once again. "It's about me, isn't it?"

"No, it's not that," the blond replied softly, his hands shaking at his side.

"What did he say? Is he using me to get to you? Did he threaten to tell the school about us or something like that? Just tell me, Naruto!" Sasuke asked, growing increasingly irritated with his boyfriend's stubborn attitude.

"It's not like that!" Naruto exclaimed, turning to face the Uchiha. "He's not trying to hurt me - he's _in love_ with me!"

Sasuke felt the color drain from his face. He had never considered the possibility that Gaara might fall for Naruto. To Sasuke, Gaara had always been the bloodthirsty killer of the school and nothing more. Now, he realized that, deep down, Gaara was just as human as the rest of them, and he was in love with Naruto. His Naruto.

"Did Gaara tell you that himself?"

"More or less," Naruto said, looking ashamed once more. "He kissed me… well, he tried to, at least. I pushed him away."

"He _kissed _you?"

"Shh!" the blond interrupted, cupping a hand over the Uchiha's mouth. "Keep it down! You want the whole school to hear or something?"

Sasuke slapped the hand away and continued in his raised voice. "What the hell do you expect me to say, Naruto? How could you let him kiss you like that?"

"It's not like I knew he was going to do it, Sasuke! He just… surprised me!" Naruto pouted, crossing his arms defensively. "Look, it's not like you knew he was in love with me, either."

_Damn – he's got a point._

"Well… yeah, but…I don't know!" Sasuke exclaimed before throwing his arms up in exasperation. He took a moment to regain his composure before speaking in a calmer tone. "What did you do – when he kissed you, that is?"

"I kicked him into a lamp – that's why his hand's all bandaged," Naruto admitted, scratching the back of his head. "Then we talked. I wanted to know what he was thinking."

"And he told you he was in love with you, I take it?'

"Basically. He knew he'd never stand a chance against you, Sasuke, but he still wanted to try kissing me just once. To fly as close to love as possible before spiraling down to a sea of loneliness."

"Like Icarus," Sasuke mused, laughing to himself. As usual, Naruto caught him completely off guard with a profound thought. "And you just left things like that?"

"No, I couldn't completely reject him like that. I told him he could always find someone new, but that I was already in love with you. He'd already accepted that, I think, but I still felt like I was destroying his dreams or something," Naruto continued, shaking his head in confusion.

"You can't help it if someone falls in love with you, Naruto – it's not your job to love them back. It's better to let him no there's no chance of a relationship than to give him false hopes," Sasuke sighed, placing a hand on the vulpine boy's shoulder. "Besides, you've already done more than enough for Gaara – you're his only real friend in the world. If he's learned anything from you, then it shouldn't take him long to create new friendships."

_Either that, or Gaara will completely snap and try to kill me… yikes…_

"You're probably right, but still… I keep thinking about the time you told me you hated me. I didn't give up – I kept believing I could win you over. Was it right for me to tell Gaara there's no chance? Maybe all he needs is that hope…"

"Naruto, this is for the best, trust me. You're still friends with Gaara, right? You care about him, just not in the same way he cares for you. There's nothing you can do to change that," Sasuke said, running a hand through his hair in thought. "And as for when I said I hated you – I think you knew, deep down, that I was lying at the time. I was scared of the feelings I had for you, and I wanted to ignore them. And you also didn't try to show your feelings for me by kissing me against my will – you defended me instead."

"What are you trying to say?"

"It's hard to put into words… let's just say, if you want to help Gaara, then don't worry about returning your love for him. Instead, just try to be there for him – that's all he really needs," the Uchiha concluded, satisfied with his advice. "For starters, you can join me after school when I go to beat the crap out of him. I might need someone to stop me if I get carried away."

Before Naruto could offer any objection, Sasuke started out of the cafeteria, clenching his fists and biting his lip. Even if Naruto forgave Gaara for what he did, the Uchiha wasn't about to let things go so easily. For one, Gaara had crossed the line by kissing his boyfriend, but he'd also put Naruto into that awkward position. It was Sasuke's turn to stand up and defend his boyfriend, whether the blond liked it or not.

So, the Uchiha crawled through the rest of his classes, tapping his foot anxiously and practically staring at the clock, waiting for the final bell to ring. When that chime finally came at the end of Kakashi's class, Sasuke bolted for the door, his backpack slung over shoulder as he darted down the hall. He didn't even bother to stop at his locker, but instead headed outside, where a small crowd of students had already gathered. He stopped at the top of the stairs and scanned the area, looking for that blood-red hair among the sea of heads.

Before he could find his target, however, Sasuke heard someone approach from behind him. He didn't even bother to look at the new arrival. "Don't try to stop me, Naruto. I have to show Gaara that I'm not just going to let him walk all over me – I have to stand up for myself."

"I know, Uchiha."

_Uchiha?_

Sasuke spun around in surprise, only to find Gaara standing behind him, his arms crossed. On either side of the redhead were Naruto and Lee, both wearing solemn expressions. "What's going on?"

"I told him you wanted to see him after school," Naruto confessed with a sigh. "He knows you're just doing what you have to do."

"And why's Lee here?" the Uchiha asked, nodding towards the aforementioned teen. "Don't tell me you called in backup?"

"He's with me," Gaara interrupted frostily, shooting Sasuke a warning glare. "He's not going to interfere. This is just between you and me."

Sasuke considered this for a moment, trying to see if he was walking into some sort of trap. He soon came to the conclusion that they were telling the truth – or, at the very least, Naruto was. That was enough. "All right. Just one question before we do this, though: did you know what you were doing? Did you consider the consequences?"

"I knew exactly what I was doing. I knew I'd be rejected, and I knew you'd want retribution. I understand, Uchiha," the redhead said with a nod. "Now, let's get this over with."

Sasuke returned the nod and, taking a breath, punched Gaara right in the cheek. The blow sent Gaara tumbling back into Lee, who caught the redhead in his arms before he could fall to the ground. Shaking his hand, Sasuke simply stared at his opponent. Gaara stared back, his eyes filled with a sort of cold acceptance. He didn't even move to wipe the blood from his lip. This was his punishment, and he knew it.

More importantly, Sasuke noticed the way Lee seemed to be restraining himself. He wanted to fight back, to step in and protect Gaara. Why?

_Gaara did say Lee was with him. Did he mean they're… together?_

Sasuke cocked his fist once more, preparing to land another blow. He hesitated, seeing the pain in Lee's eyes. Naruto seemed torn himself. Was Sasuke even enjoying this?

_I can't do it…_

Sasuke's fists unclenched, and he extended a hand to the redhead. Gaara briefly stared at the hand, unsure what he should do, before grasping it with his own. With a grunt, Sasuke pulled his opponent to his feet and smiled.

"Sorry about that."

Gaara was shocked. "That's it, Uchiha? You didn't even hit me that hard."

"You've learned your lesson, I can tell," Sasuke said confidently. "You knew you were in the wrong, I think that's enough. And besides… I'm pretty sure you won't be going after Naruto any time soon."

"What do you mean, Uchiha?" Gaara asked, spitting out a bit of blood.

"Oh, I think you know. Right, Lee?" Sasuke replied, shooting the mop-topped teen a sly smirk.

Neither Lee nor Gaara could say a word. Lee turned a deep shade of red and scratched his chin, while Gaara found his lips curling into a half-smile. Naruto was just relieved that the fight was over as he rushed to his boyfriend's side.

"You're more observant than I thought, Uchiha," the redhead said, walking over to Lee's side. "Truce?"

"For now," Sasuke replied, turning to walk off with his own boyfriend. "If you try anything like that again, though… well, to use your phrase, I'll castrate you with a rusty fork."

With that, Sasuke started down the stairs, feeling quite proud of himself for beating Gaara at his own game. Naruto, on the other hand, was simply confused. "What was that all about?"

"Let's just say Gaara found someone new much faster than we expected."

Naruto's eyes widened. "You don't mean… Gaara and Lee? Together?"

Sasuke didn't say a word – his smirk was a sufficient response.

xxxxx

Iruka Umino sat on the couch in his apartment later that night, staring at the phone with a glass of vodka in one hand. Sitting on the coffee table before him was a half empty bottle of the drink, sitting beside numerous papers he'd torn to shreds in an earlier rampage. His eyes were red, and he looked surprisingly pale.

"Damn you, Danzo. I hope you die in a fire…"

After guzzling down the rest of the vodka, Iruka set the empty glass down beside the bottle and picked up the phone. Though the buttons were somewhat blurry from a combination of alcohol and tears, he managed to dial his desired number and waited, praying no one would pick up on the other end. Sadly, he did not have such luck.

"Hello?" came an energetic voice on the other end. A dog was barking in the background.

"Hi, Naruto," Iruka said with forced enthusiasm, trying to cover his slurred speech.

"Oh, hey, Dad! What's up?"

"Nothing, nothing – I just wanted to see how things are going down there. Having a good time at school and everything?"

"Yeah! It's been great this year!" Naruto exclaimed on the other end. "Sorry I haven't called you recently – I've just been really busy."

"That's fine, that's fine. I'm glad to hear things are going well," Iruka said, wiping away a tear as he spoke. "Look, Naruto, I have something to tell you…"

"Wait just a second, Dad," Naruto interrupted, "Stop it, Sasuke! That tickles!"

_Sasuke? Who's Sasuke?_

"Ha-ha! I said stop it! Leave my feet alone!" Naruto continued on the other end, accompanied by another boy's laughter. "That's it, I'm so going to get you after this! You still there, Dad? What was it you had to tell me?"

"Oh… just… stay out of trouble, that's all," Iruka concluded, feeling a sharp stab of pain in his heart. "Now go get Sasuke, or whoever it is, all right?"

Naruto hesitated. "Y-yeah, sure. Will do. Bye, Dad."

"Goodbye, Naruto."

"Dammit, Sasuke! Now my Dad heard –"

With that, the phone cut off on the other end, and Iruka found himself chuckling pitifully. "I couldn't do it… I can't bear to break his heart like that…"

Soon, the forced laughter had turned into tears of anger, and Iruka found himself grasping the glass once more. He just stared at the glass for a moment, tears running down his cheeks as he curse. "Damn you, Danzo! I'll see you in hell!"

With a roar, Iruka hurled the glass at the wall, causing it to shatter with a loud crack. As the shards fell to the carpet, the former teacher collapsed back onto the couch in a heap of despair.

"What the hell am I going to do?"


	23. The Only Living Boy in Konoha

WARNING - Lime in this chapter. It doesn't get particularly graphic, but if you're offended by that type of content, well... you've been warned.

Okay, now that we got that out of the way, here's the next chapter. It's a bit longer, but that's just more to enjoy! I'd like to thank you all for reading and reviewing, and without further ado, on with the chapter!

* * *

23. The Only Living Boy in Konoha

It was raining that Friday morning in Konoha Cemetery. Resting just beside the local park, the somber rows of graves lay just atop a hill, looking out over the city. On a clear day it would be a very peaceful sight, watching the sunrise over the town while the dead enjoyed their eternal rest – a bittersweet union of beginnings and ends. Today, though, it was only dreary. Thick, gray clouds loomed overhead, pouring down on the tombstones and causing nearby flowers to droop under the weight.

Thus, understandably, there were no visitors at the cemetery that morning save one. He stood completely motionless over one particular grave, staring blankly at the epitaph. The way he seemed completely unfazed by the rain, combined with his glossy-eyed gaze, made it appear as if he were dead himself. A zombie, numb to the rest of the world.

This particular man carried a bouquet of lilacs in one hand, the rain running off their petals and dripping onto the grave below. He also wore a distinct mask over the lower half of his face, which had turned almost black in its damp state. Even as the rain matted down his hair, obscuring his vision of the epitaph, the man remained motionless, and it was only the sudden crack of thunder that seemed to snap him out of his daze.

Of course, the man didn't jump or anything – in fact, he seemed to move after the lightning strike merely by coincidence. With a sigh, he bent down and laid the lilacs on the grave and brushed his hand over the lettering – _Obito Uchiha._

"What do you want me to do, Obito? Is it really okay to start over again?" the man asked calmly as he rose to his feet. "I know you can't answer me – but still, I'm not sure if I'm ready yet. I can't just wait forever, though, right?"

The rain continued to fall, its roar providing the man with his only answer.

"It's my own fault, I know. If I hadn't been so foolish, you'd still be here today," the man continued. He chuckled half-heartedly. "I suppose you don't need me to tell you that, though, do you?"

More rain. The pause was considerably longer this time.

"I don't want to replace you – I know I can never do that. But… I look at Sasuke, and I see how much happier he is now with Naruto. Your little cousin, Obito – he's in love. Probably wouldn't admit it, but he is," the man laughed a put a hand over his mask. "I wonder if that's how I've been these past few years, though. Have I been like Sasuke, turning a cold shoulder to the world? I'm just afraid I'll wake up one day forty years down the road and realize I'm all alone."

Rain.

"I really wish you could hear this. Well, for all I know, maybe you can. I just want to know how you feel about this – should I try to do what makes me happy? Am I even worthy of that?" the man paused, and turned away from the grave. "Thanks for your time, Obito. Sorry to keep you."

With that, the silver-haired man started down the hill towards Konoha High, his clothes thoroughly soaked, and his conscience burdened with guilt.

xxxxx

"Sorry about the other day, by the way," Sasuke said to Naruto as he fumbled through the items in his locker. First hour had just ended for that Friday, and he was preparing to run off to his next class while spending a few, quick minutes with his boyfriend.

"No you're not," Naruto replied, crossing his arms over his chest with a humph. "I told you to stop multiple times, but you just kept on going."

"Yeah, you're right," the Uchiha said with a smirk, slamming his locker shut. "Still, I never knew you were so ticklish down there. Just a little lick and you're giggling like a schoolgirl…"

"I have sensitive feet, all right? It's nothing to be ashamed of," the blond snapped, his cheeks reddening. "I mean, you can lick them if you want to, but at least wait until I'm off the phone with my dad. That just feels… wrong."

_I can't believe we're actually having this discussion in the middle of the hallway. Then again, I'm the one who brought it up. Am I enjoying this? Is it that sense of danger that someone might overhear us? Is that why I kept sucking on Naruto's toe, even though he was trying to talk to Iruka?_

"Why? Does it make you feel _dirty?_" Sasuke asked, his voice dropping to a whisper as he leaned into Naruto's ear.

_Or maybe I just like making _him_ squirm for a change…_

Naruto's blush had deepened significantly as he backed away, and he hurriedly covered his cheeks with a free hand. "No! It's not that! It's just… well, he doesn't really know about us yet. I'm not sure how he'd react."

"I see. So you're ashamed of me, then?"

"What? No! No!" Naruto exclaimed, his eyes widening as he waved his hands wildly. "It's nothing like that, I swear!"

Sasuke chuckled. "Wow, you really need to lighten up, Naruto. Ever since that thing with Gaara you've been too tense."

"And you've been too upbeat," the blond retorted, sticking out his tongue childishly.

"Well, I _have_ been feeling pretty good since that little fight," Sasuke admitted, running a hand through his hair. "I mean, I don't have to worry about Gaara killing you anymore, I won a battle over you I didn't even know I was fighting, and I got to punch that redheaded bastard right in the face. It was the perfect day."

"Humph, even so, I want to make it up to you. Over what happened between me and Gaara, I mean," Naruto concluded, looking a bit frustrated.

"Is that what you've been worried about? What, you think I'm going to leave you because I'm jealous or something?" Sasuke asked jokingly, only to notice the look of concern in his boyfriend's face. "Look, Naruto, you're worrying over nothing. If anything, I'd leave you because you're so serious all of a sudden."

"Very funny. You didn't think I was that serious when you were trying to eat my toe, now did y…" Naruto began, only to come a halt mid-speech as he had a brainstorm. His lips curled into his usual, wicked grin, and Sasuke gulped.

_Oh boy – now I've done it…_

"You know, Sasuke, I do feel kind of bad that Iruka interrupted us the other day," Naruto began, tugging gently on his boyfriend's blue shirt. "Kiba has track practice after school today, so he'll be a little late. We'll have the apartment to ourselves if you want to continue where we left off…"

Sasuke felt his mouth run dry as he stared down at the blond's flirtatious smirk. How the tables were so easily turned was beyond the Uchiha, but he could definitely feel the color rising in his cheeks as he backed up against his locker. Suddenly, he became painfully aware of the other students watching him curiously.

He nodded. "Y-yeah. That'd be great…"

With a satisfied grin, Naruto took a step back, causing Sasuke to heave a sigh of relief. Before the blond could comment on the new arrangement, however, he and Sasuke heard someone clear his throat behind them. Turning their heads to the side, the couple found Shikamaru standing with his arms crossed, with Choji waiting a few steps behind.

"Am I interrupting something important here?" Shikamaru asked, shooting to two teens a suspicious glance.

"We were j – "

"No, not at all," Sasuke answered quickly as he cupped a hand over Naruto's open mouth. "What's up?"

"You haven't seen Kakashi today, have you?" the Nara said in a lowered tone. "Choji says he never showed up for first hour today."

Sasuke shrugged. "He's probably sick. It happens to everyone, sooner or later."

"That's just it – there was no sub or anything," Choji interjected as he waddled to his friend's side. "Tsunade called his apartment, but he didn't answer. It's like he vanished."

_Yeah, "vanished." He probably just had some car trouble…_

"I wouldn't be too worried. You know Kakashi – the only time I'd be concerned is if he actually showed up somewhere on time," the Uchiha concluded with a laugh. Overhead, the bell rang, and the surrounded students began to shuffle towards their next class. Sasuke joined them, knowing his friends would follow.

"You can't keep on ignoring this, Sasuke! I know you've noticed it, too," Shikamaru said, rushing to the Uchiha's side as they made their way down the crowded hallway. "He's be acting strangely all week. I tried talking to him about it, but he tried to play it off like it was nothing."

"So he's been acting a little funny. So what? Maybe it's just a new medication."

"I think Shikamaru's right, Sasuke. Kakashi _has_ seemed more distant than usual," Naruto suggested, a hint of urgency in his voice. "He barely even notices we're there – it's like his mind is elsewhere."

"Not you too, Naruto! I told you, Kakashi's fine, so just drop it!" Sasuke exclaimed, spinning around to address his assembled friends as a whole.

No sooner had he done so, however, than he noticed the silver-haired man walking through the main entrance, soaked from head to toe with his feet covered with mud. Many students stopped to stare at the eccentric teacher. Some were concerned, some were amused, but most were simply scared. Sasuke was among the latter.

_Damn it… they were right. He really is in bad shape…_

Indeed, Kakashi actually looked like a zombie at the moment. He looked quite pale, and his movements seemed sluggish from his heavy clothes. Most shocking, though, were his eyes. Even as they met Sasuke's, they never once showed any glint of recognition. To say they looked dead would not do them justice – Sasuke could see more emotion in that stolid gaze than in the teacher's brightest smile. It wasn't sorrow, or depression. It was emptiness.

Sasuke knew that feeling well.

"You see what I mean, then?" Shikamaru said, placing a hand on the Uchiha's shoulder. "He's not gonna talk to me. If he sees that he's even got you concerned, though, he might just come clean."

"I don't know. What can I do? I'm only sixteen! It's not my place to talk to Kakashi about life," the raven-haired teen replied with a shake of his head. "I can't do it!"

"What're you talking about, Sasuke?" Naruto spat as he approached his boyfriend, only to be gently pushed back by Shikamaru.

"Wait, Naruto. Let me handle this," the Nara said with a serious tone. The blond seemed ready to resist, but stopped when he saw the look of warning in the other boy's eye. The message was clear – this was not Naruto's place to interfere.

"Sure." Naruto nodded and stepped back to wait alongside Choji.

"Thanks. Now as for you," Shikamaru began, shifting his focus back to Sasuke. "You're going to have to think of a better excuse not to talk to Kakashi than 'I'm only sixteen.' You're probably more qualified to talk to him than any adult in this whole building."

"What? No – I don't know what kind of problems he could be having…"

"That's a lie and you know it. I've only seen that look in Kakashi's eyes once before, and I'm pretty sure you know where. You've been through some things that most people go their entire lives without experiencing firsthand. Do you honestly think I knew how to react when you first told me about your parents?"

Sasuke was silent.

"No, of course I didn't. I still listened to you, though. I tried to help," Shikamaru continued, his tone almost scolding now. "But I wasn't the first person you talked to about it, was I? Unless I'm mistaken, you'd already talked with someone who could relate to your loss."

The Uchiha glanced up, meeting Kakashi's distant gaze once more. He felt his heart sink. "I treated him like dirt, but he was always there to listen. What if I can't help him, though?"

"He's been waiting to talk to you about it, I'm sure. He's shared your loss with you, he knew what it was like. All that time you worked through the death of your parents, though, whatever loss he's suffered has been eating him up on the inside. Now he has to face it, but he's afraid. He needs your help, Sasuke."

Sasuke turned to his friend with a smirk. "And what makes you such an expert all of a sudden?"

Shikamaru laughed and patted the Uchiha's shoulder. "Are you kidding? I have both you _and _Naruto as friends – I could write a book on this stuff by now."

"Then why don't you?"

"Too troublesome," the Nara replied, resting his hands behind his head. "Now quit stalling. Kakashi's waiting."

_Sharp as usual, I see…_

With a sigh, Sasuke gave his friends a quick wave goodbye and started toward his teacher, who was still shambling through the hallway, looking almost possessed. The Uchiha met with no difficulty approaching Kakashi, however, for all the other students were scrambling to get as far away from the man as possible. Sasuke couldn't blame him – even though he had known Kakashi practically his entire life, he felt apprehensive about talking to him in his current state.

When Sasuke finally did make it to Kakashi's side, the teacher simply brushed past him as if he hadn't even noticed his presence. Somewhat disconcerted, but still determined to get through to the man, Sasuke cleared his throat.

"Ahem… Kakashi? Can I talk to you for a second?"

Without even turning his head to look at the teen, Kakashi responded monotonically, "Sure, Sasuke. Can it wait until after class? I'm running a little behind, as you might've noticed."

"Tsunade couldn't get a hold of you this morning – chances are she already called in a sub for next hour. I think you have time now," Sasuke replied sternly, latching onto the teacher's wrist. "Let's go."

Kakashi turned, a weak smile hidden behind his mask. "Shikamaru talked you into this, didn't he?"

"That's right – I'm his trump card. Now are you gonna stand there all day, or are we going to talk this over?"

The silver-haired man shook his head and sighed. "All right, you win. Let's go to the teachers' lounge – we'll have some privacy there."

Together, Sasuke and Kakashi walked down the hallway, now thinly populated by tardy students, and made their way to the teachers' lounge by the main office. There, Kakashi cracked the door open and, seeing it was empty, ushered his young guest inside. He then quickly locked the door shut and closed the blinds on the surrounding windows, effectively sealing the two of them off from the rest of the school.

Sasuke took a moment to look around the room. He couldn't believe how absolutely boring the fabled teachers' lounge was – it was completely bare save for a few magazines, a microwave blinking _12:00_, and a coffee maker. It was like an interrogation room, in a way, complete with a bright, fluorescent light buzzing overhead.

_I'll make him talk. He'll sing like a canary…_

Taking a seat at opposite ends of the chipped, plastic table, Sasuke and Kakashi stared at each other for a moment, neither one saying a word. Finally, the Uchiha leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms, studying the other man intently.

"So, were you visiting Obito's grave again this morning?"

Kakashi was silent and simply looked away. It was enough of a response for Sasuke.

"You'll be lucky if you don't catch pneumonia, you know? Just look at you, you're soaking wet! Did you really plan on teaching like that today?"

"I'll dry off eventually," the teacher offered meekly.

"Not like that, you won't," Sasuke said, sounding quite frustrated with his subject. He looked around the room before noticing the radiator in the corner. "I take it you walked to school today, too. Am I right?"

Kakashi shook his head. "It just wouldn't feel right, driving to visit him…"

"Well, we have the blinds closed. Hurry up and take off your wet stuff. We'll set them out on the radiator to dry," the Uchiha offered with a sigh, rising from his seat to assist the teacher.

It was surprisingly difficult getting Kakashi out of his sopping wet clothes. Even with Sasuke tugging on the shirtsleeves while the teacher tried to slip the collar over his head, they found that the moisture made the cloth stick to Kakashi's skin. Sasuke couldn't help but feel like he was taking care of an infant, the way he had to struggle just to get Kakashi undressed.

Once the shirt was off, however, it was much easier to take off the socks and pants, as there was much less resistance. They even removed Kakashi's signature mask, adding it to the pile on the radiator, leaving the man in just a pair of black boxerbriefs. Satisfied that Kakashi could finally warm up, Sasuke headed back to his chair to resume his interrogation.

Before he could ask another question, however, the Uchiha noticed that Kakashi was shivering. At first he assumed it was from being wet and nearly naked – that would've made sense, after all – but upon closer examination, Sasuke found it was something much worse. Kakashi, the man that had practically raised him for the past five years, was crying.

_My god… what the hell's going on?_

Of course, Kakashi wasn't weeping openly or anything. To a casual observer, he would've looked like your ordinary teacher sitting in the teachers' lounge in his underwear. Sasuke could tell, however, that Kakashi was struggling to keep it all together. The few tears running down his cheeks could easily have been mistaken for rainwater dripping from his hair, and his shivering was subtle, but it was the teacher's breathing that said it all. As he stared at the table before him, Kakashi's breaths were short and quick, as if he might hyperventilate at any moment.

Sasuke had no idea what to say. He only felt fear as he stared at the man he thought he had known so well. Kakashi, the cool, collected teacher who was always there to give advice and listen to Sasuke vent, was now sitting before him on the brink of an emotional breakdown. Even the teacher's appearance seemed alien – actually seeing his face without the mask, not to mention his pale, gaunt frame. It looked as if Kakashi hadn't eaten lately, either.

_Shikamaru was right. How could I have missed this? Or did I just choose to ignore it? What kind of a friend am I?_

"Kakashi… you have to tell me what's going on. Talk to me. Please," Sasuke urged in a soft tone.

The silver-haired man glanced up at the Uchiha, only to jerk his head quickly to the side once again. It was almost as if it burned to look at the teen. "I'm sorry, Sasuke. Just forget about it. I'll be fine."

"You'll be fine? You'll be fine?" Sasuke exclaimed as he jumped out of his chair. "Are you fucking kidding me? Look at yourself! There's no way in hell I'm leaving this room until you tell me why you're such a mess all of a sudden!"

Kakashi chanced a look back at Sasuke and smiled feebly. "You look like him, you know."

Sasuke shot the teacher a confused look. "Like who? Obito?"

Kakashi nodded. "It's probably just me, but I can't help but think of him when I look at you. Even though you were only cousins…"

"So this _is_ about him, then," Sasuke concluded as he calmly sat back down. "It's been six years, Kakashi. I thought you worked through this already?"

The silver-haired man shook his head slowly. "I wanted to – really I did – but I just ignored it. I thought it would go away on its own in time. You see, after he died, your parents were the ones who tried to talk to me about it. They were the only family I had, in a way."

"That's why you were around so much?"

"It helped. Even though seeing you made me think of him, I didn't want to forget. It was painful, but it brought me some comfort, seeing you and Itachi – like a part of him was still with me, somehow."

Sasuke gazed down at the floor. "But then…"

"Then your parents died," Kakashi said softly. "That was a shock for me, too, but I didn't have time to mourn like I did with Obito. I felt it was my responsibility to watch over you and Itachi. No, it wasn't an obligation – it was a _need_. I couldn't bear to see the two of you suffer, so I did what I could to help. Itachi seemed to cope with it well enough, but you became so distant. That hurt me, to see you like that. It was like you were dead inside."

"A feeling you know quite well, I'm sure."

Kakashi forced a laugh. "I guess you could say that. I knew how you felt, and I wanted to help you, like your family had helped me."

"But all the while, you had Obito waiting in the back of your mind," Sasuke added, nodding sagely.

"I don't think I was trying to ignore it – you know I was always visiting his grave – but I wasn't concerned about my own problems. For those few years, all I cared about were you and your brother. Maybe I thought it was what Obito would've wanted – someone to look after his family in his place," Kakashi began, before shaking his head vigorously. "No, that isn't right either. That makes it sound like the only reason I cared for you was because I felt guilty. It's more than that…"

"I know, Kakashi. It's complicated – I understand."

"In a way, it was like how you and Naruto became closer. You met each other through chance, but you saw something in each other – similar experiences, or whatever it was – and you built a bond out of it," Kakashi continued before pausing. His voice broke as he spoke once again. "That's what's been the hardest about this past week. I see you with Naruto, and I can't help but think of him. It's like looking into the past…"

Suddenly, it all clicked. Sasuke leaned forward, studying the silver-haired man carefully. "Wait – I think I understand now. Ever since Naruto and I have been together, you've finally had to face your problems with Obito, and it's eating you up inside. Am I right so far?"

Kakashi nodded, biting his lower lip to fight back oncoming tears.

"You probably realize that you need to move on and try to find someone new, but it's too hard. You just can't bear to forget about him."

Finally, the teacher broke. Burying his head in his open hands, Kakashi let the tears fall, trying to make an intelligible response. "I… I loved him, Sasuke. And he's gone! And it's my own fault! How can I move on from that? How?"

"You can't," Sasuke concluded, realizing this was exactly what Shikamaru had been talking about. This was where his experiences finally became useful. "Obito's gone – that's something you'll live with for the rest of your life."

"Then how can I try to love again? I'll just end up hurting them too…"

"No matter how much you blame yourself, Kakashi, he won't come back. There's no sense in beating yourself over it any more than you have. Obito wouldn't want that," Sasuke said, rising from his chair to comfort the other man. "That being said, you shouldn't just forget about him, either. You loved Obito, and nothing you do will ever change that."

"I know that, Sasuke," Kakashi said in frustration as he stifled his tears. "Of course I still love him, and I know he would only want me to do what makes me happy, but… it's hard."

"No one said it would be easy," the Uchiha continued, placing a consoling hand on the teacher's shoulder. "But that's what you have friends for. Talk to some of the other teachers – you get along with Gai and Asuma, right? Have them help you out. Maybe they know someone, or can at least help ease you back into it. And as soon as you find the right person, never let him go. Learn from your experiences with Obito and forge a new love that'll bring you happiness."

Kakashi was silent for a moment. He'd stopped shaking, and though his eyes were red from crying, he'd managed to regain his composure. Sasuke removed his hand and began to gather the teacher's clothes, which had dried somewhat. After setting them on the table, the Uchiha started for the door, so that his mentor would have some time to think everything over.

"Wait, Sasuke," Kakashi called, still staring blankly at his desk. Sasuke froze, his hand on the doorknob. "Do you really think it's possible? Can I find the right person a second time?"

"You'll never know if you don't try," Sasuke replied, shooting the silver-haired man a grin.

Kakashi returned the smile, albeit a much softer, but genuine one. "Thanks, Sasuke. See you in class."

The Uchiha laughed to himself as he started out the door. "Welcome back, Kakashi."

xxxxx

Shikamaru Nara stood outside the Konoha Theater that night, trying to look as relaxed as possible as he leaned against the wall, occasionally checking his watch. It was 7:55 – assuming Temari was punctual, she would be there in only a few minutes. Until Shikamaru picked her out of the crowd, though, he had no choice but to stand there and fight the uphill battle to remain calm.

It had been bad enough getting through the Kakashi incident earlier that day, but this anxiety was bound to give the Nara an ulcer sooner or later. He could remember the time when he wouldn't get involved with any of this stuff – the days when all he had to worry about was getting through the day.

They were simpler times… but Shikamaru knew they were long gone. Somehow, in just the past few years, he had found himself getting involved more and more with other people. Friendships snuck up on him, bonds were formed, and soon the lazy genius was working harder than he ever had before to keep track of everything.

It was a pain in the ass, having to bend over backwards just so other people's lives wouldn't fall apart, but deep down, Shikamaru loved it. He had never felt so fulfilled before and, as much as he hated to admit it, he liked having something to do. Maybe he'd only been lazy before because he couldn't find the right thing to challenge him - chess matches could only push his brain so far, after all.

_Well, I've certainly got enough on my mind now, don't I?_

Shikamaru chuckled nervously to himself as he examined his watch once again. It was now 8:01 – Temari was late. With a sigh, he dug his hands into his pockets and continued to wait as other couples shuffled into the theater.

_At least Sasuke's little pep talk with Kakashi seemed to work. Still, I wish he'd tell me what the hell he said…_

That was one thing that always irritated Shikamaru: secrecy. He could see through his friends' lies quickly, and that usually told him enough about a situation so he could form his own conclusion. There remained that doubt, however, and Shikamaru did not like having to consider the minimal possibility that he was wrong.

He was almost certain that whatever Kakashi and Sasuke had talked about had involved some sort of loss on the teacher's part. Not a recent loss, but one that had been lingering in the back of his mind for some time. The question, of course, was what that loss was.

Clearly, Sasuke must've known, because he knew how to handle the situation. Perhaps it was something they had discussed before, or maybe Kakashi had mentioned it in passing. In any case, the Uchiha knew, but he refused to tell Shikamaru.

_What could that mean? If it's so important that Sasuke has to keep it a secret, then it must be pretty big. Could I have misread him? Could it have been guilt? Maybe Kakashi did something many years ago that's been haunting him… a robbery? Murder? No, Kakashi's not the type. He couldn't possibly kill someone in cold blood…_

Shikamaru placed a hand to his chin, drowning out the din as he contemplated the situation.

_It's more likely that Kakashi somehow wronged someone he cared about in the past. I can see why hurting an innocent person would get to you, but he looked too ill for it to be just _anyone_. What was it? A lie? Did he never get to tell his parents he loved him? No… still too small. I'm getting closer, though – it's definitely that kind of regret. Something he did must've caused someone dear to him a great deal of pain._

_A sibling? His parents? A friend? No… I'm ignoring the most obvious fact. This change in Kakashi started just after Sasuke and Naruto got together. Kakashi was the one who tried to push Sasuke into that relationship – clearly he wanted to see Sasuke fall in love. But why? What does it matter to him if Sasuke lives the rest of his life cold and distant? Because Kakashi sees _himself_ in Sasuke. It's the only logical answer… it's his lover! That's what's been bothering him!_

"Hello~ Shikamaru? Dozing off again, are we?"

Snapping back to reality, the Nara looked up to find a blonde with four ponytails staring back at him. His jaw dropped open. As much as he wanted to say something, he couldn't seem to say anything other than a few stupid syllables as he looked his date over.

Temari had decided to flaunt her assets that night, apparently. She wore a black, low-cut shirt that exposed her bare belly bearing the image of weasel with a sickle in its mouth. In addition, she wore only a short, black skirt, with fishnet stockings covering the rest of her long legs. She bent over to stare her date in the eye, a mischievous smirk on her face.

"Well, well – you just can't stop staring at me, can you? It's gonna be hard to follow the movie that way, you know," she chastised, lightly tapping the Nara's chin with her finger.

"Oh, no! It's not that!" Shikamaru stammered with a blush. Realizing it was useless, however, he simply scratched the back of his head. "I mean… you look beautiful tonight, Temari."

The blonde grinned, and picked her date up into a hug. "Now _that's_ what I wanted to hear! You know, you don't look half bad yourself, Shika."

After Temari set him back down, Shikamaru glanced down at his apparel, having forgotten what exactly he was wearing. He had picked out his favorite mesh undershirt, which he wore beneath an unzipped green jacket. As for his pants, he'd simply picked out some clean, black jeans that were on top of the pile – nothing special.

_Note to self – pay more attention to clothes next time…_

"Oh, thanks," Shikamaru replied, not quite sure how to take the compliment.

"No problem," Temari said, pulling the Nara close before finishing in a whisper. "Although, I have to say, I enjoyed your outfit at that party a lot more…"

Shikamaru flushed. "Ssh! Do you have to tell the whole world about that?"

"Hey, no need to get so embarrassed. Who knows? Maybe you can give a repeat performance tonight," Temari said with a wink.

"R-really?" the Nara asked, his eyes widening.

"No, you silly!" the blond laughed, dragging Shikamaru towards the marquee. "I don't move that fast. But if you play your cards right… well, let's just say you already have a few things going for you, okay?"

Shikamaru had no idea what to say, so he decided just to keep quiet. Once they were up to the box office, the Nara briefly glanced up at the movies before laying down a $20 bill. "Two for _Pirates of the Caribbean_, please."

"All right, that'll be in theater #4 on your right. Enjoy the show!" the usher replied, sliding the tickets beneath the window.

As Shikamaru picked up the tickets and started towards the theater, he heard Temari whisper once more into his ear. "You're off to a good start, Shika."

His heart racing, Shikamaru led his date into the dark theater, where they found their seats. Temari had been right – he didn't follow the movie at all. While Johnny Depp swashbuckled across the screen, his eyes were cautiously studying the girl beside him, while his hand slid closer to hers. When their hands met, they stared at one another briefly before leaning in for a kiss.

Shikamaru was glad it was dark – it at least gave him an excuse for being awkward. He had no idea what to do with his hands, or even his lips, but it was all right. Temari didn't seem to care, and the fact that she was not immediately repulsed gave the Nara some much-needed confidence. They only kissed for a few moments, their lips meeting just long enough for them to get a taste for each other, but Shikamaru was on cloud nine as he stared into his date's glossy eyes.

For some reason, Shikamaru's mind briefly jumped back to Kakashi, love, and Sasuke, before he leaned in for a second kiss. It was strange, but he could not help but wonder if Sasuke was having as much fun at that moment as he was.

If only he had known…

xxxxx

A few hours prior to Shikamaru's date, Naruto Uzumaki was leaving school feeling a strange combination of excitement, worry, and relief. On the one hand, the whole incident with Kakashi had been unsettling, and for the entire hour that Sasuke was gone the blond's nerves were rattled.

All the possible causes of Kakashi's grief ran through his mind – running from a simple cause such as stress, to the most outrageous scenarios Naruto could think of. What if Kakashi's uncle was being held hostage, and he was scrambling to find the money? What if he'd been abducted by aliens and they'd tampered with his memory, and now he was having nightmares about the event, which made him think he was losing his mind?

Of course, when Naruto finally saw Sasuke again in gym class, his fears subsided quickly. It was obvious that Sasuke had managed to console Kakashi at least somewhat, though the Uchiha refused to reveal any details of their conversation. Unlike Shikamaru, however, Naruto was perfectly fine being left in the dark. Sure, he wanted to know what had happened to Kakashi, but he figured Sasuke would tell him when the time was right. There was no need to rush those personal things.

What was occupying the blond's mind the most, however, was the night he had planned with his boyfriend. Ever since their conversation that morning, Naruto had been conjuring the perfect evening with Sasuke in his mind. He was a little concerned that Sasuke might back out of their arrangement, given the craziness with Kakashi, but somehow he doubted that would be the case. After a stressful day, Sasuke needed a chance to unwind with Naruto more than ever.

Thus, it was with all three of these emotions swirling in his head that Naruto left school that day alongside his boyfriend. It had stopped raining by this point, with the afternoon sun just beginning to peak through the thinning clouds, though the streets were still covered in puddles of varying depth. Naruto had a tendency to jump in these puddles as they made their way towards his apartment, inadvertently splashing Sasuke in the process.

"Would you cut it out?" Sasuke asked after the blond jumped in one particularly deep puddle. He wiped some of the water from his face as they walked along. "I'd rather stay dry, if at all possible."

"Oh, come on. I thought you liked getting wet?" Naruto asked with a grin, his pants soaked to his knees, turning them a darker shade of orange. "Remember that time under the bridge?"

"That was different!" Sasuke stammered, though his apparent frustration only filled his boyfriend with glee.

"Maybe you're right. But don't worry – you won't be in those wet clothes for long."

Sasuke eyed the vulpine boy suspiciously as they crossed the street. Most of their peers had long since passed them, rushing towards their respective homes as quickly as possible. For what Naruto had planned, he was moving at a surprisingly leisurely pace, as if he was simply going for a morning stroll. It wasn't like him at all. "What are you planning, exactly?"

"You'll see," Naruto replied, flashing a smile over his shoulder. "You might want to call Itachi – tell him you won't be home tonight, you know?"

"I'll be fine. He knows he can call me if he needs me. Not that he'd care anyway," Sasuke answered, only to realize afterwards the blond's implication. "Why won't I be home tonight, anyway?"

"I was thinking we could give the sleepover thing another try… with just the two of us," the blond said coyly. "I want to make tonight special."

Not another word was said on the matter, much to Naruto's relief. He had been afraid Sasuke would offer some resistance to the idea, but it seemed the Uchiha had decided to go along with it. Satisfied, Naruto immediately turned onto the next street, causing Sasuke to look at him in confusion.

"Where are you going, Naruto? Your apartment's the other way…"

"I know – like I said, I want to make this special. I have to build the suspense, right?" Naruto said as he stomped into another puddle, his boyfriend wincing as the water splashed upward.

A few blocks later, the duo arrived at the Konoha City Park. It was mostly empty, likely due to the rain, which had left the ground soft and soggy, with the grass covered in a glistening dew. Taking his boyfriend by the hand, Naruto walked down the path alongside the trickling stream, where a few ducks swam past.

Something had been bothering Naruto for the past few weeks – something that he had been dying to get off his chest, but had never been able to put to words. He knew, before he and Sasuke progressed any further in their relationship, he would have to come clean about it.

Not that it was anything particularly bad – it wasn't like kissing Gaara, where he his guilt had forced him to come clean right away – but it was still bothering him. Something like what Kakashi had been going through, a lingering presence in the back of his mind that could only be ignored for so long. Looking around the empty park, Naruto knew this was the perfect opportunity. It was time to confess.

"Peaceful, isn't it?" the blond asked awkwardly as he scanned area, trying to enjoy the tranquility.

Sasuke only nodded as he, too, took in the sight. They continued on in silence until they reached the bridge, where Naruto came to a halt. He turned and stared down at the mouth of the stream, where it joined the park's small pond. He sighed.

"Something on your mind?" Sasuke asked, leaning over the railing.

Naruto glanced up in surprise. "What? No, it's nothing. I was just thinking…"

"Exactly. That's what worries me," the raven-haired teen responded, raising a skeptical eyebrow. "What's bothering you?"

_Guess he saw right through that one…_

"Earlier today… you said I was ashamed of you. Because I didn't want Iruka to know about us," the blond said as he watched the passing ducks swim out into the pond.

"Naruto, I said I was joking," Sasuke replied, patting his boyfriend on the back. "Don't tell me that's been bothering you this whole time?"

"Well, not exactly. I know you didn't mean it, but it got me thinking – I've only really told a few of our friends about it. Other than that this whole thing's been a secret. Whenever we kiss, it's always in my apartment or under this bridge, or somewhere else where no one can see us."

"And… your point?"

_Here it goes…_

"I don't like it! It makes it look like I'm trying to hide you from the rest of the world when I don't want to. Really, I want to tell the whole world about us… but I'm scared," Naruto confessed, covering his face in shame. "I know it's ridiculous, but I don't know what'll happen if I do. Something's bound to change, and I just want things to stay the same…"

Sasuke sighed and sat up on the edge of the railing, so he could get a better look at his boyfriend. "Naruto… as I recall, I was the one who wanted to keep our relationship a secret to begin with."

"You only beat me to the punch," the blond interrupted, shaking his head. "I know I act all confident, but it's just an act. I may act like I don't care what others think, but deep down I'm terrified that I'll be an outcast again. Like when I was in the orphanage…"

"Then why do you take such risks? Why did you make out with me under this bridge? Why did you flirt with me in school, or hang around me in general?" Sasuke asked, gesticulating into the air. "You don't have to do it for me, Naruto. I don't want you to do anything you're not comfortable with."

"I know! But that's just it… even though it scares the hell out of me sometimes, I want them to know that I care about you. Even if I can't bring myself to announce it to the world, I at least want to be seen with you. To let people know that Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha are more than they seem."

"So you want to continue as usual?"

"Yeah… I guess so. I didn't want you to think that I hadn't thought about it, though…"

"I appreciate that," Sasuke replied with a soft smile, the breeze blowing through his hair. "Someday, when we're both ready, we can tell the rest of the world about us. Until then, though, we'll keep it among our friends. The others – Ino, Sakura – they're not worthy of knowing just yet."

"Right," Naruto laughed, his trademark grin returning to his face. "There was one more thing I wanted to do while we were out here, though."

"And what's that?"

Pulling on Sasuke's collar, Naruto brought the teen down to his level and into a sudden kiss. Even though there was no one else around, Naruto felt his heart racing as their lips met. This was what he wanted – to show his love for Sasuke to all. To hide it from no one. It was just an illusion, sure – a public display of affection with no actual public – but that was enough for that moment.

Their kiss was brief, more of a gesture than anything else, and when they pulled out of it, Naruto helped his boyfriend down off the railing and smiled. "Thanks. I needed that."

"Anytime."

Suddenly, Naruto felt a small drop of water pat down on his head. Glancing up, he found the clouds were gathering once more, releasing a light sprinkle on the ground below. He turned his attention back to Sasuke and laughed.

"Should we make a run for it?"

"Sure. I'll race you there," Sasuke replied before breaking into a sprint. Naruto followed close behind, and together the couple raced back to the blond's apartment, hoping to avoid the inevitable downpour.

Fortunately, the park wasn't too far from their destination, and they only had to cross a few streets before arriving at the apartment building's parking lot. After bounding up the stairs, they skidded to a halt just outside Naruto and Kiba's apartment, where the blond quickly unlocked the door. Together, he and Sasuke scrambled inside just as the torrential rain began.

They both collapsed on the carpet, breathing heavily from their sprint, and let their sore muscles relax. After a few seconds of listening to the rain beating against the window, however, the couple found themselves laughing uncontrollably, neither one knowing why.

"That was a close one," Naruto said with a sigh, wiping a joyful tear from his eye.

"What? The race, or beating the rain?" Sasuke asked as he sat up, dabbing at his sweaty brow with his shirttail.

"Both."

"Ha! You wish," the Uchiha replied confidently, kicking his shoes off. "I'm not sure if you noticed, but I was the one who had to wait for you."

"Only because you got a head start," Naruto said defensively as he rose from the floor, removing his shoes as well. "I managed to catch up quite a bit, too. If we'd been racing to Shikamaru's place I would've caught you."

"Please, I was holding back. I didn't want to completely demoralize you."

Naruto glared at the other teen for a moment before extending a hand to his boyfriend. "Well, whatever. I want a rematch sometime, though."

Sasuke grabbed the outstretched hand and pulled himself to his feet. "All right – you just say the word."

Suddenly, the Uchiha's stomach began to rumble audibly, causing Naruto's own gut to react in kind. They both stared down at their complaining bellies and laughed. "Looks like we'll have to find something to eat, first. I don't exactly have a lot of food…"

"You have ramen, right?" Sasuke asked as he followed his boyfriend into the kitchen. "We could have some of that."

"Oh yeah – I always have ramen," Naruto replied, his eyes brightening at the thought of his favorite dish. He flung open the kitchen cabinets, only to have his heart sink. Sitting on the top shelf was a single package of top ramen – the rest was completely bare. "Except for today, apparently. I guess we forgot to stock up this week…"

In a momentary panic, Naruto began to dig through the other cupboards in the kitchen, tossing out numerous empty boxes of cereal as he scoured the room for something edible. Sadly, he came up empty handed – then he remembered why there was no food in the apartment.

"I forgot – this weekend is parents' weekend. Kiba's mom and dad are coming up tomorrow, and they're going to take him shopping then." Removing the top ramen from the shelf, he sheepishly handed it to his boyfriend. "This is all the food we have, apparently."

"Can we share it?" the Uchiha asked, glancing down at the package curiously. "I know it's not a lot, but it's better than having one of us go hungry."

"Are you sure? I mean, I can survive without food for a while," Naruto began, only to have his grumbling stomach interrupt him. He acknowledged the Uchiha's immediate glare with a nod. "I'll get cooking, then."

Scrounging around in his cabinets for a few moments, Naruto pulled forth a pot, which he filled with water and placed on the nearby stove. Once the stove was on and the water began to boil, he dumped the dried noodles inside and began to set the table while they cooked. It was a very meager looking setup – just one bowl, two glasses of water and two spoons sitting on the somewhat wobbly table – but Sasuke didn't seem to mind. He simply took his place and waited, looking almost guilty for letting the blond do all the work. Apparently Sasuke knew that Naruto would never let him lift a finger, though, so he didn't even ask. It wasn't worth the effort.

After a few minutes, Naruto wandered back to the stove, where he found the noodles were nice and ready. He lifted the pot from the stove and poured them into the single bowl on the table, announcing with a flourish, "Bon appetit."

Taking a seat across from the Uchiha, Naruto began to dig in, eagerly scooping the noodles into his mouth. Occasionally he'd glance up, to make sure Sasuke was getting his share as well, before returning to his noodly goodness. Before long, there was only a bowl of salty broth left on the table, with a single, lengthy noodle floating in the middle.

"It's all yours," Naruto offered, motioning to his boyfriend.

"No, you take it. It's your ramen, after all."

Naruto considered this for a moment, before a smirk crossed his face. "Say, have you ever seen _Lady and the Tramp_?"

"You're not thinking of the spaghetti thing, are you?" Sasuke asked, shooting the blond a skeptical look.

"You mean you don't want to try it? We did say we were going to share this meal, after all. Might as well share the last noodle, too."

Sasuke shrugged his shoulders, "Fine – let's give it a try."

Scooping up their respective ends of the noodle into their mouths, Naruto and Sasuke leaned forward and proceeded to inch their way towards one another. Before they could reach the middle, however, the tension broke the fragile noodle, and they both slurped up their ends. Naruto felt somewhat disappointed, until he glanced up and met his boyfriend's gaze. The Uchiha was still inching forward across the table, his lips curling into a smile.

"You know, Naruto… I didn't see it break."

Clambering onto the table, Sasuke bent his head down and pressed his lips against the blond's. Naruto quickly returned the kiss with pressure of his own, digging his hands into the Uchiha's hair as he closed his eyes. They enjoyed the mingling flavors for a moment, savoring the lingering taste of ramen on their lips along with the now-familiar taste of their lips. Before their kiss could progress beyond this beginning stage, however, Naruto pulled out and gazed up at his boyfriend in concern.

"Let's take this somewhere else. That doesn't look particularly comfortable."

Sasuke glanced down, starting at his legs straddling the steaming bowl of ramen broth. He laughed. "I suppose you're right. This could get pretty messy."

Hopping off the table, the raven-haired teen almost immediately grabbed Naruto once again, pulling him into yet another kiss as he backed out of the kitchen. The blond offered no resistance, but simply closed his eyes once more and let his lips go to work. Both boys seemed more than eager to kiss the other, each applying pressure with every meeting of their lips, almost as if they were locked in a fierce battle to conquer the other's mouth. Clearly the ramen had done little to satiate their true, burning hunger.

However, they seemed to let their passion blind them to their surroundings, for as they continued to kiss, with Naruto gently sucking on Sasuke's lower lip, the Uchiha backed into a nearby end table. Almost immediately, he lost his balance, causing the couple's lips to part as they tumbled to the ground.

Seeing that they were both in once piece, Naruto initiated yet another kiss, lying atop Sasuke as he explored the area just below his chin. While the Uchiha let out a slight moan, feeling the ripple of pleasure run through his body, the blond made his way down from the chin towards the base of the neck, where he soon met with a bit of cotton. He backed out of the kiss, and placed his fingers around the hem of Sasuke's shirt, tugging at it slightly.

Without so much as a word, Sasuke lifted his arms above his head, allowing Naruto to slip the shirt off with ease. With his boyfriend's bare torso now revealed, the blond tossed the shirt off to the side, and resumed his kissing frenzy, covering the Uchiha's collar almost entirely. Before Naruto could move any further south, however, Sasuke interrupted him with a tap on his shoulder.

"Wait… before you go any further."

"What?" Naruto asked in a combination of frustration and concern.

"Let me make you feel good," Sasuke asked as he yanked the blond's own shirt over his head.

_Oh… I see where this is going…_

Raising his arms above his head, Naruto helped his boyfriend strip off the shirt, before flinging it atop the nearby couch. Bowing his head down, the blond rested his head on the Uchiha's shoulder and inhaled. He had never paid much attention to Sasuke's scent before, but with his focus no longer on kissing, he found himself taking it in. It was pleasant – a masculine musk, most likely from the teen's somewhat sweaty state. Before he could dwell on the odor for long, however, the blond felt a strange, almost ticklish sensation on his neck. He fidgeted.

"Just hold still. I told you it's my turn," Sasuke chastised before resuming his own exploration of the vulpine boy's neck.

Naruto complied, trying his best to keep still, though he found it incredibly difficult. Every subtle movement of Sasuke's lips made the blond's blood pump all the more quickly. He found himself breathing deeply, taking in that scent as his own sweat mixed with the Uchiha's.

_I… I _want_ him…_

Bending his head forward, Naruto proceeded to lick the Uchiha's shoulder, carefully tasting their sweat as he moved up towards the neck. Soon, the boyfriends were kissing one another, looking like two lovebirds joining together. As they kissed, Naruto could feel Sasuke's finger sliding down his chest, gently feeling the blond's muscles just beneath the skin. Naruto wanted to join him, to touch the Uchiha's body as well, to share his sensations, but found he could not. Both of his hands were needed to support him on the floor, lest he end up crushing his boyfriend under his weight.

"Sasuke… mmm… let's move," Naruto asked between sensual kisses.

"Again?" the Uchiha asked, shooting the blond a frustrated glare. "Do we have to?"

"Please? It's just a short walk to my bedroom."

Sasuke groaned and removed his lips from Naruto's neck, leaving a distinct, red mark in its wake. Meanwhile, Naruto crawled off his boyfriend and helped him up, only to cave instantly with yet another kiss. Somehow, the blond found his hands sliding down to the Uchiha's shorts as they stumbled into the hallway. There, Naruto's fingers went to work, unfastening the raven-haired teen's belt, which he discarded in the middle of the hallway, before moving on to the shorts. Moments later, Sasuke used a free hand to push the shorts down to the floor, leaving him in just his black boxerbriefs.

Sasuke apparently wished to return the favor, as Naruto soon felt the Uchiha's hands exploring his shorts as well. While the blond struggled to open his bedroom door with one hand, his mind still focused on kissing his boyfriend, Sasuke's fingers delicately unbuttoned his shorts. Once the door opened and they backed into the room, Naruto's shorts fell to his ankles. With only his light red boxers left, the blond tumbled back onto the bed, dragging Sasuke along with him in his arms. After rolling around briefly to the center of the bed, Naruto stared down at Sasuke, resting with his elbows on either side of the Uchiha's frame.

"Well, then. Shall we continue?"

With a free hand, Naruto proceeded to carefully run his hand over his boyfriend's bare torso while his lips went to work on his nipples. Sasuke moaned and bucked slightly as Naruto tickled the nipple with his tongue, sending waves of pleasure through the Uchiha's body. Meanwhile, the blond's hand slid down to Sasuke's leg, where it began to rub against the thigh, massaging it at a steady rhythm.

"Oh… right there…"

_Heh… he likes it. Well, we're just getting started…_

As Naruto switched over to the other nipple, where he again tickled it with his tongue, he suddenly felt Sasuke's hands press down on his back. They worked their way from his shoulders on down, brushing against Naruto's adolescent muscles as they went, before reaching the blond's boxers. There, the Uchiha's hands suddenly clamped down on Naruto's butt, causing the blond to inhale sharply in surprise.

Rather than stop what he was doing, though, Naruto merely paused in his sucking of the nipple and let Sasuke have his fun. It was certainly a bit distracting, feeling the Uchiha's hands clinging to his butt, but it was by no means a bad thing. In fact, it was actually quite nice, to know that Sasuke had found a favorite body part. The fact that it was Naruto's butt only gave him something to tease his boyfriend about later on.

Suddenly, the blond felt a slight tug. Glancing back, he found Sasuke's hands moving down, sliding Naruto's boxers off in the process. Again, though, Naruto didn't resist, but actually helped kick his underwear the rest of the way off, sending them flying to the corner of the room. There he was – lying on his bed, completely naked, pressed up against his boyfriend. Needless to say, Naruto found himself suddenly excited, with a distinct twitch between his legs responding accordingly. With Sasuke still clinging to his now-bare butt, Naruto soon found himself quite hard, and quite distracted.

"Sasuke… do you mind?" Naruto asked, tugging on the leg of the Uchiha's boxerbriefs.

"Oh… y-yeah, sure," Sasuke replied, removing his hands from the blond's backside before grabbing the waistband of his underwear.

In an interesting move that involved Naruto rising a few inches off Sasuke while he bucked his hips, the couple managed to remove the last article of clothing between the two of them. It soon joined Naruto's boxers in the corner, leaving them both completely naked, and, as they soon discovered, quite eager for more than kissing.

"A little excited, are we?" Sasuke asked with a smirk, staring down at his boyfriend's crotch.

"Look who's talking!" Naruto replied with a laugh, sitting cross-legged on the bedspread. "You're hard as a rock!"

Sasuke turned a bit red as he glanced down at his erection. "W-well… you were playing with my nipples like that. I wasn't kissing you at all!"

"Yeah, but you think I didn't notice you squeezing my ass like that?" Naruto replied with a grin. They both laughed, and sat in awkward silence for a moment, before the blond finally broke the tension. "So… what should we do about this?"

"You mean… these?" the Uchiha asked, taking another quick glance at his crotch. "Do you mean…?"

"Should we?"

"If it's all right with you…"

"Well, I'll do it if you want to…"

"No one's making you…"

Suddenly, Naruto ended the conversation abruptly with a kiss, catching Sasuke completely off guard. He lay down beside the raven-haired teen, wrapping one arm over his shoulder and pulling him into an embrace. Sasuke followed suit, draping his free arm over his boyfriend, where his hand soon found its way back to the blond's butt.

It was awkward. There they were, two teens lying face to face, their bodies pressed against each other, tingling with excitement. Neither one knew quite what to do first – they were trying hard to control the twitches down south, which required most of their mental strength. Finally, though, Naruto's free hand inched its way down, running past Sasuke's belly button, until it reached its destination. Tentatively, the blond's hand grasped the other boy and, much like with Sasuke's thigh before, began to stroke.

Almost immediately, Sasuke moaned quite audibly, taking a few deep breaths to calm himself as waves of pleasure pulsed through his body. As Naruto continued to work, however, the Uchiha managed to regain some control, and he found his free hand wandering down Naruto's front. Within moments, he, too, had grasped Naruto, and began to stroke slowly, trying to make the experience as pleasurable as possible.

_Oh god… mmm…_

"Sasuke… just like that…" Naruto moaned, closing his eyes while he continued to caress the other teen.

The Uchiha made no reply, but instead pressed his lips against his boyfriend's, allowing them to kiss while their hands continued to work. As the minutes passed, their strokes became faster and faster, their breaths becoming almost desperate, and their bodies glistening with sweat. Before long, they could not even continue their kiss, as their attention was entirely consumed by what was going on below. Then, as the throbbing pleasure became almost painful, Naruto felt it, and he stared into Sasuke's eyes.

"Sasuke… are you?"

"Almost…"

"Oh… I'm gonna…"

And there it was. His entire body consumed with pleasure, Naruto felt a sudden release. Seconds later, he felt Sasuke do the same, his body shuddering in bliss. As they moaned in ecstasy, their bodies covered with sweat and love, the couple breathed deeply gazing at each other in exhaustion. After a moment, Naruto gave a combination of a laugh and a sigh, his lips curling into a smile.

"That was fun."

"Yeah… felt good, too," Sasuke said, wiping some of the sweaty hair from his face. "You were great."

"You too…" Naruto whispered, fatigue getting the best of him.

Thus, lying naked with his boyfriend in his arms, Naruto drifted off to sleep, feeling utterly at peace.

* * *

Well... yeah, hope you enjoyed that. It was certainly fun to write! What'll happen with Kakashi, now that he's being forced to address his problems with Obito? And what about Naruto and Sasuke - how will things be the morning after? And what of Iruka? Will he have any luck in solving his current unemployment dilemma? All this and more in the next chapter. Until then, remember - review!


	24. Drinking My Vodka and Lime

I'm sorry! I know this chapter is very, very late. I got behind with school starting up and everything. But, on the other hand, it ended up longer than I intended, so that's a bonus. Also, just a note - I realized that I had made Danzo the DA in a previous chapter - though he was only mentioned in passing. I have since changed the DA to Homura - one of the Konoha advisors. Sorry about any confusion, but it's hard to keep track of these smaller characters sometimes.

Anyway, thank you all for your patience and for your reviews. I hope you enjoy this chapter! On we go!

* * *

24. Drinking My Vodka and Lime

Naruto awoke the next morning in a daze. Everything that had happened the night before, from his walk home with Sasuke to their fantastic make-out session seemed like a dream – a mere fantasy of the blond's and nothing more. Even when he realized that he was still lying naked in bed, his arms wrapped around Sasuke with a sheet barely draped over their bodies, Naruto insisted he was still in a dream. There was simply no way Sasuke Uchiha would have done what they did the night before, right?

Glancing over at the nightstand, Naruto was surprised to find his clock reading Saturday, September 25. It was 11:00 am. Suddenly, the blond realized that he might not have imagined the whole outing after all. Turning his head back on the pillow, Naruto gently pressed his face into the back of Sasuke's head and breathed in deeply.

_I know that smell… it really is him! I can't be imagining that!_

Of course, no sooner had Naruto reached this conclusion than he realized yet another pressing matter – he was lying naked in bed with his boyfriend. Something about the reality of this situation made Naruto freeze up, as if he didn't know what to do. He wanted to just maintain his embrace and fall back asleep, but there were other urges standing in the blond's way. Even though he closed his eyes and tried to count backwards, just ease himself back to sleep, Naruto found his mind wandering back to the naked teen in his arms.

Not that anyone could blame him, exactly. He was a teenage male with raging hormones, and as much as he wanted to lie with Sasuke and drift into eternity, he also wanted nothing more than to ravage him. Thus, though Naruto kept his eyes sealed and tried to think unsexy thoughts, the rest of his body seemed to act on its own. His arms caressed Sasuke's lithe frame, moving up and down the teen's arm from shoulder to wrist, while his nose took in more of the Uchiha's musk. Most problematic, though, was the blond's crotch, which was very much aware of its proximity to Sasuke's butt. Naturally, it was only a matter of time before Naruto found himself quite hard once again, and he soon gave up on getting back to sleep anytime soon.

_Stupid sexy Sasuke…_

Deciding that it was best to get up and remove himself from the temptation at hand, Naruto cautiously removed his arms from Sasuke and slipped out of bed, carefully covering his boyfriend with the sheets. Tiptoeing towards the door, Naruto placed his hand on the doorknob and hesitated. He glanced down at his prominent erection and turned towards the room. Soon, he found his discarded, red boxers lying in the corner, which he retrieved as quietly as possible.

_Better at least put something on… just in case Kiba came home while we were asleep…_

After slipping into his underwear, Naruto once again started for the door, which he cautiously opened, wincing with every creak of the hinges, and sealed shut just as delicately. Once on the other side, he almost instantly felt something wet and rubbery run along his toe. It only took a quick glance to find it was Akamaru, who was apparently quite eager for some company.

"Hey, little guy," Naruto whispered, picking the puppy up by the armpits. He cradled the white dog in his arm as he started towards the kitchen. "Let's get you some breakfast, huh?"

Akamaru yipped happily in response, causing Naruto to cringe. He paused, looking back over his shoulder at his bedroom, and waited for the worst. When Sasuke did not emerge wielding baseball bat, however, blond heaved a sigh of relief. Apparently Sasuke was a heavier sleeper than he remembered.

Thus, continuing with Akamaru to the kitchen, Naruto dug around in the cabinets for a bag of puppy chow, which he poured in the general area of the bowl. Naruto never bothered to be neat with the puppy's meals, since Akamaru tended to eat the little kibbles rolling along the ground before those actually in his dog dish. To him, it was food either way.

"There you go, Akamaru. Eat up," Naruto said with a yawn as he collapsed onto one of the nearby chairs. Naturally, the puppy barked happily and dug into its food, practically inhaling chunks of the kibble mountain with every bite. Naruto watched Akamaru go to work with amusement, amazed that such a tiny creature could eat so quickly.

_I swear, it took Sasuke and I even longer to eat that one bowl of ramen between the two of us last night…_

Suddenly, it occurred to the blond – he hadn't eaten anything since that bowl of ramen, which had hardly been filling itself. His stomach rumbled, causing Akamaru to back away cautiously. Naruto patted his trembling tummy and groaned.

"Hurry up, Kiba. How am I supposed to eat if you're not back to stock the fridge?"

Almost as if in response to the blond's question, there was a knock at the door, causing Naruto's mouth to curl up in a grin. He gently patted Akamaru's head and rose from his seat, saying, "That would be Kiba, right on cue."

With an excited Akamaru following at his heels, Naruto walked to the front door, hoping he could get there before a second knock. As soon as he arrived, the blond hastily undid the lock and threw open the door, eager for some form of sustenance. Gazing out the door in anticipation, however, Naruto's enthusiasm was almost immediately replaced by dread. Standing on the other side of the door was not Kiba at all. It was Iruka.

"Hey, Naruto! Did I wake you?" the man asked with an unusually wide smile, staring down at his son.

"N-no, not at all," Naruto replied, still too stunned by his dad's presence to process everything.

"Really? You always walk around like that, then?" Iruka laughed, indicating a bit further down the blond's body.

Naruto glanced down in confusion, only to realize that he was in just his underwear. Worse yet, his case of morning wood had not completely subsided, leaving him with a noticeable bulge in his boxers. He turned a shade of red that almost matched his shorts. "Oh, right – it's laundry day. Haven't quite finished yet."

"Well, why don't I help out? Might as well, since I'm here," Iruka continued, stepping into the apartment despite Naruto's stutterings. Akamaru was quick to try to climb up the man's leg, causing him to laugh and pick up the puppy. "And how are you, Akamaru? Haven't seen you in a while."

Lest any more passersby see him standing in the doorway in his underwear, Naruto shut the apartment door and turned toward Iruka bewilderment. "Dad… what are you doing here?"

"It's Parents' Weekend, of course. Besides, since when do I need a reason to visit my son, huh?" Iruka asked with a laugh as Akamaru greedily licked his face.

"You told me you couldn't make it this year. Something about Danzo forcing you to supervise detention. What happened to that?" Naruto asked, crossing his arms over his bare chest.

"Turns out he didn't need me after all," the man replied with a hint of bitterness as he set Akamaru back down on the ground. "And since I had the free time all of a sudden, I thought it would be nice to see how you're doing. Is that a crime?"

Naruto eyed Iruka suspiciously for a moment, trying to see through the man's bizarre grin. He knew that smile too well – it was the same one he used when trying to cover something up. Iruka was hiding something, and he didn't like it at all. Still, there wasn't much he could do at the moment – at least not until Iruka was willing to open up.

"You weren't kidding, Naruto. Just look at all of this dirty laundry lying around. It's a pig sty!" Iruka said, picking up what was quite clearly Sasuke's black shirt from the edge of the couch.

Naruto felt a surge of panic. "Wait, Dad! I can handle it, really!"

"Hey, it's my job to fuss over you, right? You just relax – watch some cartoons or something," the man replied with a dismissive wave of his hand, adding Naruto's own discarded shirt to the growing pile in his arms.

While Naruto tried in vain to dissuade his father from tidying up any further, Iruka simply continued down the hallway towards the blond's room, picking up articles of clothing as he went. With every piece of clothing added to the pile, Naruto felt his heart sink even further.

_Why didn't I pick these up when I had the chance? There go my socks – I don't even remember taking them off… Shit! Not Sasuke's shorts!_

Holding the Uchiha's black shorts in one hand, with a full pile cradled in his other arm, Iruka stood before Naruto's bedroom door. The blond's heart was racing – he knew perfectly well what was on the other side. Iruka seemed to sense his son's anxiety, however, and turned to the teen with a soft smile.

"No need to be so nervous, Naruto. Whatever you're hiding in here can't be that bad, right?" Iruka chuckled, causing the blond to fidget awkwardly. "Besides, if it's anything like your room back home, I think I know what to expect."

_If only you knew…_

With a loud creak, Iruka pushed the door open, sending it flying into the doorstop with a thud. Naruto's eyes immediately darted to his bed, where he found Sasuke still fast asleep, the sheets still draped over his body. By contrast, Iruka's attention was fixed entirely on the clutter lying around the room, and he seemed completely oblivious to the teen in the middle of his son's bed.

"Naruto! I know you don't like tidying up, but you could at least _try_ to pick things up every once in a while. I'm amazed you can find anything in here!" Iruka exclaimed, picking up a wrinkled pair of shorts from the ground. "Do you honestly wait until the last minute to do your laundry or something?"

"Well… it's easier to do a few big loads. And cheaper," Naruto admitted, scratching the back of his head as Iruka made his way through the forest of discarded clothes and papers.

"Hmm… I'm not going to be able to carry this. Go grab a laundry basket, will you? Oh, wait, never mind. Here it is," Iruka said, plucking a jacket from the aforementioned bin in the corner. He proceeded to dump his collection of clothing into the basket before picking it up with a grunt. "In all seriousness, though – how were you planning on doing your laundry if all your clothes are dirty, anyway? Isn't the laundry room all the way downstairs?"

"I guess I hadn't thought about that…"

The frantic man rolled his eyes and set the nearly full basket down on the floor before tossing in a few discarded pairs of boxers. He then turned his attention to the bed, where he seemed to notice Sasuke for the first time. "Oh! I didn't know you had a friend here."

"Yeah, he stayed over last night – I couldn't just send him home in the rain, right?" Naruto said, pulling out a reasonable excuse from nowhere.

"Well that was nice of you," Iruka replied as he placed a hand to his chin. "Now, let me guess… this must be Sasuke, right?"

Naruto blinked. "H-how did you know?"

"You were talking to him the other night on the phone, right? Call it a hunch," the man said, a sneaky grin crossing his lips. "What do you say we wake him up? I'd like to wash these sheets while I'm at it, anyway."

The vulpine boy felt his blood run cold. "Wait, Dad! Don't!"

Unfortunately, he was too late. With a single tug, Iruka yanked the covers off Sasuke, revealing him in all his glory. Naruto blushed profusely, while Iruka simply stared, clearly taken aback by the sight of the naked teen.

"He… sleeps in the nude," Naruto explained, placing a hand over his burning face.

"I see," Iruka replied, biting his lip awkwardly.

Meanwhile, on the bed, Sasuke shivered briefly as his body was exposed to the cool, morning air. He reached around blindly for a sheet to cover himself before rolling onto his back. Naruto blushed even harder at his boyfriend's new position.

"Mmm… Naruto?" the Uchiha murmured with a smile, his eyes still sealed shut. When there was no response, he cracked one eye open, only to find Iruka staring back at him. Suddenly, he was very much awake.

"Who the hell are you?" Sasuke exclaimed, scrambling back until he was pressed against the headboard. His eyes were wide with momentary panic, and his legs were primed to kick, should he need to defend himself.

Naruto quickly stepped forward, waving his arms apologetically. "Sasuke! Calm down, it's okay! This is my dad… Iruka."

Sasuke looked back and forth between father and son, trying to piece it all together in his morning daze. When it finally sunk in, however, he simply nodded, watching the stranger curiously.

Iruka waved and smiled sheepishly. "Nice to meet you, Sasuke. Sorry to wake you… well, like this."

"Like what?" Sasuke asked, still somewhat confused from his sudden awakening. It was then that he noticed Naruto's blush, at which point he glanced down to find he was still quite naked. He quickly covered his crotch with his hands.

Iruka coughed uncomfortably and averted his gaze. "Ahem, like I was saying – sorry to wake you like this. I didn't realize you were… well, you know."

Sasuke made no response, but instead shuffled awkwardly to the side of the bed, keeping one hand on the goods at all time. After hopping down to the floor, he marched up to Iruka with determination, his face quite reddened. Soon, he was standing mere inches from the man and, shooting him an icy glare, snatched the pair of black boxerbriefs from the laundry basket. Without another word, he then stormed out of the room, giving both Naruto and Iruka a glimpse of his bare backside before disappearing around the corner.

"He's not exactly a morning person," Naruto explained with a weak smile. "I think he'd prefer to meet new people when he's dressed, too."

"It's all right… I shouldn't have yanked the covers off to begin with," the man responded shamefacedly. "I'll go take care of this laundry, then. Maybe he'll calm down by the time I get back."

Naruto seized the opportunity and grabbed Iruka by the wrist, practically dragging him out of the room. "Great idea! I'll try talking to him, and then I can properly introduce the two of you. Sound good? Great! No time to argue – just go, go, go!"

Completely ignoring Iruka's protests, Naruto ushered his dad out the door and slammed the door shut with a sigh. Leaning against the door, he wiped some of the nervous sweat from his brow, trying to think of some way out of his current predicament.

_Why'd he have to pick _today_ to show up? Now what am I supposed to do? Sasuke's clothes were in that basket – it'll be at least an hour before they're done. Wait – I'll just loan him some of my clothes! Iruka'll never know the difference!_

With that, Naruto raised his head and pushed himself away from the door, ready to go scrounge around in his room for some clothes. Before he could get far, however, he was greeted by very angry Sasuke, now at least partially clothed in his underwear, standing with his arms crossed in front of the hallway. Naruto gulped.

"M-morning, Sasuke. Sleep well?" the blond said with a half-smile.

Sasuke's eyes narrowed. "Why didn't you tell me he was going to be here?" he snarled.

"I didn't know! I swear!" Naruto said, waving his hands defensively. "You honestly think I would've answered the door like this if I knew?"

"I wouldn't put it past you," Sasuke sighed, shaking his head in frustration. "You could've at least stopped him from coming in your room, you know. I didn't want to meet your dad for the first time in my birthday suit."

"Believe me, I tried. But I was afraid if I made too big a deal out of it, he'd only get suspicious. Right now, all he knows is that your name is Sasuke, you're a friend of mine, and you have a habit of sleeping naked. Nothing more," Naruto said reassuringly, partially to ease Sasuke's fears, but mostly to assuage his own.

Sasuke appeared somewhat relieve, his eyes losing some of their iciness as he took a deep breath. "Even if that's the case, Naruto, just think of what could've happened if you hadn't been up. What if Kiba was here to let him in? What if he saw us… together?"

Naruto's eyes widened. "I hadn't thought of that."

"Exactly! You're sure you had no idea he was coming? He didn't say anything on the phone the other day and you just forgot…"

"No! That's what's so strange about it, Sasuke. He specifically told me he couldn't make it for Parents' Weekend. If I'd known… I would've been more careful," Naruto concluded, looking noticeably hurt over his boyfriend's mistrust. Sasuke seemed to notice this, however, and soon his anger melted away completely.

"Well, all right then. I guess there was nothing you could do about it," the Uchiha conceded. "So, what happened to the rest of my clothes? Did you put them somewhere, or what?"

"That's the thing," Naruto began sheepishly, fearing his boyfriend's inevitable wrath. "When Iruka came in this morning and saw me in my boxers, I had to come up with an excuse on the fly, so I told him it was laundry day and that the rest of my clothes were dirty. He decided to help out… and started gathering all the clothes he saw."

"Tell me you stopped him from taking mine," Sasuke interrupted, though the guilt in Naruto's eyes was enough of an answer for him. "What the hell, Naruto! Why didn't you say something?"

"It all happened so fast! Besides, how would it look if I told him your clothes were lying in the middle of the hallway! It's already suspicious enough that you're lying naked in my bed, you know," Naruto argued with his usual stubbornness.

"But now what are we supposed to do? You don't expect me to walk home like this, do you?" Sasuke asked in exasperation, snapping the waistband of his boxerbriefs.

"It's okay, Sasuke – I've got it all figured out. I only _told_ Iruka that all my clothes were dirty. He just took my word for it. We'll just get you a new outfit out of my dresser."

"Well, why didn't you say so in the first place?" Sasuke replied with a relieved laugh. "Let's go. Maybe once I'm decent you can properly introduce me to your dad."

Naruto nodded and, filled with relief, started down the hallway, his boyfriend following close behind. He'd been afraid that Sasuke would still be furious with him, but it appeared the Uchiha was taking the whole situation rather well. Yes, it had been a humiliating couple of minutes for everyone involved, but it was over now. All they needed to do was grab some pants, have a little chat with Iruka, and go on their merry way.

With a cheeky smile, Naruto glanced at the Uchiha as they walked towards the bedroom, "So, I couldn't help but notice you were whispering my name when you woke up this morning. Were you having one of _those _dreams?"

"Don't push your luck, Naruto," Sasuke replied, struggling not to look embarrassed. "It's not like you're completely innocent yourself, you know. Something kept poking me all night, and I'll bet you anything I know what it was."

Naruto laughed and leaned in close to the raven-haired teen. "Oh, come on. You liked it and you know it."

"Yeah, you know me. Nothing pleases me more than feeling your hard on rubbing up against me all night," Sasuke said, rolling his eyes. "I was worried I'd have to take you to the hospital after a few hours…"

"Hey, I can't help it if the little guy has stamina, all right?" Naruto responded with a shrug though his face reddened slightly. "Besides, if you were focusing on it for hours, then something tells me you enjoyed it even more than I did."

"W-what else could I do?" Sasuke stammered, looking quite embarrassed at being caught. "You practically had a death grip on me the whole night."

"You could've tried to swat it away, or something," Naruto argued as he pushed the door open to his room.

"Are you kidding? After last night, I was afraid I'd set you off again."

Naruto flushed and turned his head to the side with a humph. "It's not like you lasted much longer!"

Sasuke closed his eyes, a smile crossing his lips. "Hmm… I guess you're right about that one."

"I know I am," Naruto said, pounding his bare chest with his fist. "It can't be helped, you know? We're two horny teens in love – what do you expect?"

"What do I expect?" Sasuke said, stepping up beside Naruto as they approached the teen's dresser. "Well, for starters, I expect to be able to sleep over here without having your dad see me naked."

Naruto glanced at his boyfriend, only to find the Uchiha smiling softly. He returned it with a grin of his own before throwing open the dresser drawer. "Fair enough. Will some spare clothes do for now?"

Sasuke paused momentarily, his smile fading to a look of annoyance. "They would if you had them."

Raising his eyebrow quizzically, Naruto stared down at the drawer in shock. As the Uchiha said, it was completely empty save for some dust. In a panic, the blond yanked open the other drawers in his dresser, only to find a single sock and a tattered undershirt. He held the sock up in dismay. "I guess I really did need to do my laundry today…"

"What do we do now, Naruto?" Sasuke asked, his eye twitching in irritation.

"Calm down, calm down – I've got it all under control. I'm sure Kiba has some spare clothes in his room. We'll just head over there and look, all right?"

Sasuke shook his head and followed the vulpine boy out the door, muttering to himself as he entered the hallway. "So help me, Naruto…"

Pushing open Kiba's door, Naruto stormed inside, hurriedly scanning the vacant room for some clothes. Naturally, there were numerous sweaty shirts lying around from track practice, along with a couple of magazines sticking out from beneath the dog-boy's bed, but otherwise the floor was relatively clean. Deciding to simplify his search, Naruto headed straight for the dresser, where he again tore into the drawers.

"Okay, looks like we're in luck," Naruto said in relief, tossing a pair of shorts over his shoulder. "We'll just borrow these for today – Kiba'll understand."

Sasuke caught the shorts coolly in midair, only to have a t-shirt smack him right in the face. He pulled it off, eyeing his boyfriend in annoyance. "Naruto, it just occurred to me – where did you say Kiba was last night?"

"Track practice. Why do you ask?" Naruto asked, holding a borrowed pair of shorts in his hand.

"And… I assume he came home afterwards, right?"

"Nope – he was going to stay with Lee last night. I asked him if we could have the apartment to ourselves."

Sasuke looked positively shocked. "Wait… so he knows?"

"Of course not," the blond said coyly, shooting the Uchiha a grin over his shoulder. "I'm sure he has his suspicions, though."

Suddenly, Naruto saw it. Standing in the doorway just behind Sasuke was a familiar boy with brown hair and red, fang-like marks on his cheeks, with Akamaru standing patiently by his side. The blond smiled sheepishly. "I'm guessing those suspicions were just confirmed, too."

Sasuke spun around, only to find himself standing face to face with Kiba, whose surprise was slowly shifting to amusement. Flashing his usual cocky smirk, the dog-boy stepped forward, eyeing the nearly naked pair with exaggerated interest.

"Well, well… what have we here? Naruto and Sasuke, caught with their pants down…"

"Now's not the time Kiba," Sasuke warned as he hastily pulled his shirt on.

"I'll explain later, okay? Right now, we need to borrow some clothes though," Naruto interjected while pulling up his pilfered shorts. "I promise I'll return them later."

"Hey, it's fine by me," Kiba said nonchalantly. "You have to promise to tell me what exactly happened here, though. Deal?"

"I'll tell you what you _need_ to know. How about that?" Naruto offered, now fully dressed.

"Fair enough. Now come on outside – my mom wants to see you while she's here," Kiba concluded as he turned to leave the room. "Oh, and your dad's here, too. We let him in."

_Whew… dodged the bullet on that one. I don't know what we would've done if his mom had seen us. As if today wasn't awkward enough already…_

With Kiba out of the room, Naruto turned towards Sasuke and grabbed the teen's hand, squeezing it gently. Sasuke snapped his head back towards his boyfriend, only to find Naruto's lips rushing towards him for a kiss. His eyes widened, but they soon closed shut as his evident edginess faded. Before he could savor the kiss any longer, however, Naruto backed out and gently touched the Uchiha's face with his index finger.

"Sorry, can't go any further for now," the blond said, tugging on his boyfriend's hand. "I know it's awkward, but just come out and talk with them for a few minutes. For me? Who knows, you might even enjoy it."

Sasuke wiped his lips briefly, removing the lingering wetness from Naruto's kiss. "That wasn't very fair, you know."

"Oh, believe me, I know. I'll pay you back for it later, though."

"You don't need to bribe me, you know," the Uchiha continued as he followed the blond out the door.

"It's not like I won't enjoy it myself," Naruto replied with a smirk, walking out into the hallway.

Before Sasuke could say another word, he and Naruto stepped into the living room, where they found Kiba and Iruka standing beside a rather frightening woman with wild hair and similar red fang marks on her cheeks. The woman waved to the two teens, calling out to them in a gruff voice.

"Hey, Naruto! You weren't planning on hiding from me, were you?" the woman exclaimed, rushing forward to embrace the boy tightly.

"Hi there, Mrs. Inuzuka," Naruto replied, his voice muffled by the woman's bosom. "Sasuke and I were just getting ready."

"I see, I was wondering who this stranger was," Kiba's mom said, eyeing the Uchiha curiously. She extended a hand, loosening her grip on Naruto enough for the blond to breathe. "A pleasure to meet you. I'm Tsume Inuzuka."

"Sasuke Uchiha," the raven-haired teen murmured, clasping the hand in kind.

"So, I take it you're a friend of Naruto's, then?" Tsume said, taking a step back towards her son.

"You could say that," Sasuke said cryptically, avoiding eye contact with the woman. "We only really met a few weeks ago."

"Well, you certainly seem to get along well enough. Kiba tells me you spent the night here, is that right?"

"Mom, I don't think we need to interrogate him, okay?" Kiba interrupted, placing a hand on his mother's shoulder. Akamaru yipped in agreement by his feet. "Remember when you scared Dad off that time…?"

Almost instantly, Tsume shot the dog-boy a frosty glare, causing both him and Akamaru to cower in fear. With a nervous laugh, however, Iruka stepped forward and dispelled the tension. "I know, why don't we sit down and have some lunch? I think I saw some ingredients for sandwiches in those groceries you two bought – I can cook up some BLTs real quick."

"That sounds great!" Naruto exclaimed before Tsume could offer any protest. Kiba was also quick to join in, though he could only nod dumbly.

Realizing her sudden surge in temper, Tsume took a deep breath and smiled. "All right – I suppose I could have a bite to eat. I still want to hear more about the two of you, though," she said, indicating Kiba and Naruto with a nod of her head. "Don't think you're off the hook either, Sasuke."

Naruto bit his lip as the group moved into the kitchen. He knew how Tsume worked – she wouldn't stop asking questions until she was satisfied. If she suspected there was more to his and Sasuke's relationship than met the eye, she wouldn't keep it to herself.

_This could be a disaster…_

Glancing over at Sasuke, however, Naruto found he was almost eerily calm. For a moment the blond thought Sasuke might not have noticed the danger they were in, but he quickly shook the thought from his head. Sasuke wasn't that thick – even in the short time he knew the Uchiha, Naruto had figured out that much. The only explanation was that Sasuke had a plan, which left the blond with no choice but to put his trust in his boyfriend.

Sitting down at the dining room table, Naruto sat beside Sasuke, leaving an empty chair on his other side for Iruka, while Kiba sat between Tsume and the Uchiha. While Iruka began frying up some bacon and chopping lettuce, a thin smile crossed Tsume's lips. Naruto gulped.

"Now, where were we? Oh, I know – you were about to tell me how the two of you came to be friends," the woman said, leaning back in her chair as she eyed Naruto and Sasuke.

"Mom, don't embarrass me…"

"It's all right, Kiba," Sasuke interrupted, his eyes shut in concentration. "I think it's only fair that to tell her about us, don't you?"

"You see, Kiba? They have no problem talking about it with me. Stop making such a big deal of everything," Tsume teased with an exaggerated roll of her eyes. "Please, go on, Sasuke."

"Thank you," the Uchiha replied with a courteous nod. "To tell you the truth, Naruto and I bumped into each other on the first day of school. Literally."

There was a moment of awkward silence, during which Naruto stared stupidly at Sasuke. When the blond finally noticed the urging look in Sasuke's eyes, however, he sat up straight and resumed the tale.

"I-It's true – I wasn't paying attention and a plowed right into him," Naruto stuttered, unsure of what exactly Sasuke wanted him to say. "Gave him a bloody nose and everything."

"Needless to say, I wasn't too happy."

"I'd imagine not," Tsume added with a chuckle. "So, did you give him a bloody nose in return?"

"No, I just hurled a few insults before walking away. I didn't want to make a bigger deal out of it than it already was."

"But later that day, I went over to apologize to him," Naruto continued, feeling more confident in where this was going. "I felt really bad about what'd happened, but Sasuke wasn't quite ready to forgive me."

"I said some things I shouldn't have and kicked him out," Sasuke said shamefacedly.

"Oh, please – I'm sure it wasn't that bad," Tsume laughed, slapping her hand on the table. "We all say mean things when we're angry – nothing to get so worked up about."

"I said he was nothing but scum – the son of a murderer that no one wanted around. It was a low blow."

Tsume's smile shifted to a serious frown, her eyes narrowing. "I see. You brought up Kyuubi, then?"

"I regretted it almost immediately. Something about that had really struck a nerve with Naruto – he started crying before he could turn his back on me."

"I wasn't crying that much!" Naruto protested with a pout. "There was just something in my eyes…"

Sasuke's lip curled up in amusement. "Well, in any case, I wanted to apologize. I talked to Naruto the next day – well, I tried to at least. Your son's fist wanted to do some talking first, though."

"Good for you, Kiba!" Tsume exclaimed, ruffling her son's hair. He quickly swatted the hand away and blushed.

"I stepped in before he could do any real damage, though," Naruto chimed in. "I accepted his apology, but Sasuke wasn't satisfied. He wanted to pay me back with dinner, so we went to Ichiraku."

"Geez, kid – that must've cost you a fortune!" Tsume commented, her eyes widening in surprise.

"Oh, it did, but it was worth it. I felt much better after that," Sasuke replied, patting the wallet in his pocket. "Of course, I also thought for sure I'd never see Naruto again after that. Apparently Kakashi had other plans, though."

"And Kakashi's… your teacher, right?"

"Exactly – he had an assignment planned where the students would pair up, learn as much as they could about each other, and then write their life story from the other's perspective. Naturally, Naruto and I were paired up," Sasuke continued with a shrug of his shoulders.

"It wasn't exactly the smoothest week for us, trying to put together that project," Naruto said in amusement, throwing an arm over Sasuke's shoulder. "We had a pretty big fight on one occasion, and Sasuke ran off in a storm. When I saw him the next day, he was in the middle of a fight at the track meet. I stepped in to help."

"After that, we came back here to work on the report, and we've pretty much been friends ever since," Sasuke concluded, placing his hands on the table. "Once you've learned everything about a guy, it's hard not to grow at least somewhat closer to him, you know?"

Tsume eyed the two of them for a moment, taking in both what they had said, and everything that was being said in their eyes. When she finally did speak, it was just as Naruto feared. "You're hiding something."

Sasuke blanched. "What are you talking about? I just told you the whole story from start to finish!"

"Yeah, that's what you want me to think. I have a teenage son, Sasuke – I know how you boys work. You told me what you thought I wanted to hear, but there's something else going on that you're keeping secret. Now out with it!"

Neither boy knew what to do. They simply stared at each other, hoping the other would have a 'eureka' moment. Just when things seemed lost, however, a new voice entered the conversation, along with the aroma of cooked bacon.

"I think I can answer that, Tsume," Iruka piped up, setting down several BLTs on the table, along with glasses of milk. "You'll have to understand, Naruto and Sasuke were probably hoping to keep this a secret if at all possible, since it's a little embarrassing."

"Oh? Is that so?" Tsume asked, eyeing her BLT greedily. "And what's that?"

"Well, it's actually something that happened earlier this morning," Iruka resumed, taking a seat between Tsume and Naruto. "You see, last night, Sasuke was over here with Naruto when it started to pour. Of course, Naruto couldn't just send his friend home in the rain, so he offered to let Sasuke spend the night. Naturally, Sasuke agreed."

"Makes sense," the woman concluded before biting into the sandwich.

"When I arrived this morning, Naruto was collecting his clothes for laundry day. Apparently he was just letting the pile build up until he had nothing left to wear or something, because he was still wandering around in his boxers," Iruka said with a chuckle.

Kiba shot Naruto a skeptical look from across the table, causing the blond to turn a distinct shade of red. If there had been any doubt left in Kiba's mind as to what happened the night before, it had just been erased in an instant.

"Since I wanted to be helpful, I offered to help Naruto collect his laundry. So I went around the apartment and started throwing clothes in a laundry basket. When I got to Naruto's bedroom, I realized his sheets were probably getting dirty as well, so I decided to add them to the pile. The problem is I didn't realize Sasuke was still asleep beneath the covers. More importantly, I didn't realize Sasuke likes to sleep naked."

Tsume burst out laughing, sending small pieces of tomato flying to the center of the table. "Don't tell me you got an eyeful, Iruka?"

"I felt terrible about it – I'm sure he was embarrassed about it," Iruka continued, turning his attention back to a now-red Sasuke. "Sorry about that, Sasuke. I knew she wouldn't get off your case until she heard about it, though."

"It's all right," Sasuke muttered as he bit into his BLT, almost as if he were trying to hide behind the sandwich.

"That's too funny," Tsume sighed, wiping up some of the spattered sandwich from the table with her napkin. "Sorry you got all embarrassed like that, but it happens to all of us sooner or later."

"Is that so?" the Uchiha replied with a tone of disinterest.

"It happened to me," Iruka admitted, after taking a sip of his milk. He wiped some of the residue off with his napkin before continuing. "It happened not too long after I adopted Naruto. He was only 6 at the time, and was going through that "no baths" phase."

"Oh, I remember _that_ phase all-too well," Tsume groaned, glancing over at Kiba.

"Yes, it was quite a pain," Iruka sighed, shaking his head at the memory. "He'd come home from school covered in dirt from recess, but he absolutely refused to go upstairs and wash himself off. There were a few times I tried to just put him in the bath, but he'd always splash me back as retribution and get my clothes drenched. Eventually I just decided to take a bath with him, so I could at least keep him under control."

"You have far more patience than I do, Iruka. If it'd been me, Naruto would've been going off to his bath with a red butt every day," Tsume added before roaring in laughter once more.

"And that probably would've worked for you. I couldn't bring myself to do it, though," the man replied, sitting back in his chair. "But, anyway – there I am one day after school, trying to scrub Naruto down, when he wriggles out of my grasp and starts running for the door. I hop out of the bath and start running after him, knowing I can catch him if I don't give him too big of a head start. He scurries out into the living room and dives behind the couch, and I follow right after him. When he realizes there's nowhere left to hide, he runs out the door and, not thinking, I go right after him."

"Oh geez," Tsume groaned, placing a hand to her forehead.

"Exactly. He ran all the way downstairs before I finally caught him out on the front lawn of the apartment. Once I had him secured, it hit me – it was the middle of the day, and I was outside in nothing but my skin. I don't think I've ever run so fast before or since," Iruka chuckled before picking up his sandwich once more.

Once she had finished laughing herself, Tsume turned her attention back to Sasuke. "You see? That's what I'm talking about. Happens to everyone sooner or later."

"I suppose so," Sasuke responded, taking a sip of his milk.

"Hmm… so Naruto was a little nudist when he was a kid, too, huh?" Tsume asked, gesturing towards Iruka. "I can remember Kiba doing something like that when he was just a little guy. He'd like to play 'cowboy,' which usually involved riding around on Kuromaru in nothing but a cowboy hat."

"Mom! Don't talk about stuff like that!"

"Please, Kiba – I'm pretty sure we've seen you in more embarrassing situations lately," Naruto said with a sly smile. Kiba's eyes widened, until they looked almost pleading.

"Oh? What's this, Kiba? Have you been holding out on me?" Tsume asked, ruffling her son's hair playfully once again.

"No, it's nothing. _Right, Naruto?_" the dog-boy said through gritted teeth.

"Yes, you're right – what you had on was nothing," Naruto said, his grin widening. "You see, we were having a sleepover the other day, just so we could all have a good time watching movies and stuff, and Kiba decided to play a little game. When the pizza delivery woman arrived, he dared Shikamaru to answer the door in just his undies. It backfired, though, when Shikamaru dared Kiba to chase after the pizza girl with the tip in similar attire."

"Ha! Hope she hadn't gone far!" Tsume laughed, patting her son on the back.

"No, she hadn't. Just down to the parking lot, and no one saw me. So like I said, it was nothing," Kiba snapped, now blushing profusely.

"Hmm… okay, sure, whatever you say," Tsume said, turning her attention once more towards Sasuke. "How about you, Sasuke? You must have something else to contribute."

Sasuke considered this for a moment before a smile crossed his lips. "Well, sure. Why not? I have one. It was back when I was just a kid – probably five or six. I'd go to this island in the lake by our house. It wasn't a big place – the lake itself is tiny – but I'd paddle out there in our canoe and hang out on there. One of my favorite games to play was Tarzan, but I could never make a loincloth or anything, so I just ran around naked. That all stopped when I fell in a bunch of poison ivy – _that_ was hard to explain."

The whole table erupted in laughter, causing Akamaru to start barking in confusion. Their laughter lasted for quite some time, with tears coming to their eyes as they tried to control their breathing. When it was all over, they wiped their eyes and sighed, letting only a few more giggles escape.

"See what I mean? It happens to all of us," Tsume concluded before finishing the remaining bites of her BLT.

"Yeah, you're probably right. As long as you can laugh about it afterwards, it's not a big deal," Sasuke agreed with a slight smile. "Still, I can't help but wish this morning had gone a bit more smoothly."

"I'm sure Iruka wishes the same, isn't that right?" Tsume asked, nudging the man beside her with her elbow. Iruka looked startled, shaking his head as he snapped out of his daze.

"What's that? Oh, yes – I guess it was a little uncomfortable for all of us. It's all behind us now, though, so we can just laugh about it and move on," Iruka replied with an awkward smile, causing Naruto to shoot him a curious look.

"Is everything all right, Dad? You've been acting funny all morning," the blond asked, setting his sandwich down on his plate.

"Yeah, now that he mentions it, I did think something was up. What's the story, Iruka?" Tsume asked, leaning in towards the man. "You know you can't hide anything from us, so just spill it."

"It's nothing, I promise," Iruka explained as he hastily rose from his seat. "I think Naruto's clothes should be washed by now – I'll go put them in the dryer."

With that, Iruka hurried out the door, leaving the others staring at one another in confusion. Upon hearing the door slam shut, Tsume glanced at Naruto, her eyes filled with concern.

"You think something's wrong, Naruto?"

"I'm not sure. There's no sense in forcing him to talk about it, though. He won't talk until he's ready," Naruto replied, trying to mask his own worry with nonchalance. "Just give him some time – he'll come around."

Sasuke leaned over and whispered into his boyfriend's ear, "Do you think he knows something?"

"I doubt it," the blond replied in a similarly hushed tone. "He seemed distracted when I talked to him this morning. My guess is he doesn't suspect a thing."

Relieved, Sasuke sat back in his chair and finished off his glass of milk. Several minutes later, Iruka returned with his forced smile and sat back at the table. Not another word was spoken about his unusual behavior – instead, they simply ate in silence, trying hard to ignore the elephant in the room.

Once the meals were finished, they all helped clear the table and wash the dishes while Iruka went to get the clothes from the dryer. When he returned, Naruto and Sasuke got changed, while Kiba and Tsume left to do some shopping. Sasuke left shortly afterwards, knowing he had things to do at home, leaving Naruto all alone with his dad. They sat down on the couch, not knowing what else to do, and sat quietly, glancing around the room uncomfortably. Finally, it was Iruka who broke the silence with a sigh.

"Naruto… there's something I have to tell you," Iruka began, averting his eyes from his son.

_Oh boy… here it comes. I didn't think he'd open up this quickly…_

"What is it, Dad?" Naruto asked, trying to sound as casual as possible. "New girlfriend?"

"I wish," the man chuckled, sitting hunched over with his hands on his knees. "I didn't want to talk about it while everyone else was here. I thought it might be easier this way."

"What's the matter with you, Dad? Out with it already!"

_This can't be good…_

"I said earlier that Danzo didn't need me to supervise detention after all… well that was only half true," Iruka admitted, his eyes watering. "The fact of the matter is he doesn't need me at all. I was fired."

Naruto pumped a fist victoriously. "What're you talking about? That's great! Nobody ever liked that wrinkly old bastard, anyway. Now you can find a job at another school – a better school!"

"I wish it were that simple, Naruto," Iruka replied, chuckling at the teen's enthusiasm. "But with the economy the way it is, it could be months before I find a job. Plus, the school year's already started – most places aren't hiring."

"Hmm… you're right, that sucks," Naruto said, crossing his arms and nodding his head in thought. "You could always try to find another job in the meantime, right?"

"Yes, I suppose I could – but most part time jobs won't give me the salary I need to support both myself and your schooling," Iruka continued in frustration. "What I'm trying to say is… you can't stay here at Konoha High. Not now, at least."

Suddenly, it clicked. In an instant, Naruto's tone changed from one of support to one of outrage. He leapt up onto the couch, towering over his father as he cried out, "WHAT? No! You can't be serious! This is a joke, right? You're just messing with me."

"I'm sorry, Naruto. You have to understand this is hard on me, too. I want you to get a good education, and I know you've made some good friends here," Iruka continued, visibly struggling to fight back tears. "I promise it's only for a little while… just until I find a new job…"

Naruto began to sputter, struggling to cope with the new situation. No more Konoha High? No more Kiba? And Shikamaru?

_And Sasuke…?_

"You're serious, aren't you?" the blond whispered, his eyes widening. "That's why you came here, isn't it? To take me away."

Iruka nodded solemnly. "I wish there was some other way, but I was counting on that paycheck to pay your tuition. Without it… well, there's just not enough. I've already called the school to ask them if we can get some sort of loan, but they said it's out of the question. Until I can find a job, they won't even consider helping us out."

_It's all over, then… I'll have to leave Sasuke, after we've come so far. He'll probably move on… or forget about me. By the time I'm back, he'll have someone new. And all because that fucking Danzo is too cheap to keep one extra teacher on his payroll._

Naruto clenched his fist, tears rolling down his cheeks. He quickly wiped them away with his sleeve and sniffled. Once he felt the tears were dry, he simply glared at the man who had raised him as his father. "Iruka… I know this isn't you fault, but I don't want to speak to you right now. So, if you'll excuse me, I have some packing to do."

"I understand. I'll be back in the morning to talk about this some more, okay?" Iruka concluded, closing his eyes guiltily.

Naruto made no response, but instead walked off towards his room, struggling to keep his emotions in check. As soon as he had sealed the door shut, however, the blond collapsed on his bed, staring up at the ceiling in numb disbelief. He didn't feel angry or sad – just empty.

_'Tis better to have loved and lost…_

xxxxx

Late that night, Kakashi Hatake sat at the bar in a single's club of downtown Konoha, casually sipping on a glass of punch while watching the other patrons mingle. He had come with the intention of talking to someone knew, as Sasuke had suggested, but he was finding it was easier said than done. Sure, he had noticed more than a few people who weren't exactly unattractive, but Kakashi wasn't looking for a purely physical relationship. He wanted to find someone who he could connect with on a deeper level, and as far as the teacher could tell, not one of the patrons shared his feelings. They were all too busy feeling each other up and drowning their misery in booze to think of something like love.

"Need a refill, sir?"

Startled, Kakashi spun around in surprise to find the bartender staring at him with a raised eyebrow. "Pardon me?"

"I asked if you wanted a refill. You glass is about empty," the plump, balding man asked, pointing down at Kakashi's drink.

The silver-haired teacher examined the few drops of pink liquid at the bottom of the glass for a moment. "Sure – what the hey."

"You got it," the bartender replied, filling the glass back up with punch.

"Thanks," Kakashi murmured before taking a sip of the punch.

_What am I doing here? I'm not ready for this yet…_

Just as the teacher considered leaving, he heard the front door squeak open. Glancing over out of curiosity, Kakashi found a brunet with a long scar over his nose enter the building, his eyes showing the dullness of depression. He took a seat beside Kakashi at the bar, causing the bartender to sidle up to the newcomer.

"What'll it be, pal?"

"Vodka and lime, please," the man muttered, staring blankly at the polished wood before him.

"Coming right up," the bartender replied, taking a moment to mix the drink before sliding in front of the man. "Drink up."

Rather than make any sort of reply, the man simply took a long swig from the glass before setting it back down with a bang. He sighed.

"Rough day?" Kakashi asked, setting his own glass down on the bar.

"That's an understatement," the man spat, his eyes already reddish – though Kakashi wasn't sure whether that was from the booze.

"Want to talk about it?"

"If it gives you an idea, I pretty much ruined my son's life today," the man said, taking another drink of his vodka. "And the worst part is, it's completely beyond my control! I've never felt so helpless…"

"Well, what did you do to ruin your son's life, might I ask?" Kakashi pressed, turning towards the man. "If you don't mind me asking, that is."

_Why do I care so much all of a sudden?_

"He's a student here at Konoha High," the man continued, wiping his nose sloppily. "I sent him away here to make sure he gets a good education, but it hasn't been easy paying his tuition. Now that I've lost my job back home, though, there's no way he can stay here. I have to take him back to Mizu this weekend."

"You lost your job? Can you not find a new one, or something?"

"I'm a teacher – most of the jobs are already taken. They don't hire much once the school year starts," the man said with a faint smile. "Until then, all I can do is try to find a part time job to get by."

"Oh, believe me. I understand all-too well," Kakashi continued, downing the remainder of his punch. "I'm a teacher myself, actually. What do you teach?"

"English," the man muttered, glancing over at Kakashi.

"Same here. What grade?"

"Eighth grade, but I'm pretty flexible," the man replied with a hint of pride. "I once substituted for a high school course on Shakespeare. Managed to hold my own all right."

"So you're a middle school teacher," Kakashi murmured, rubbing his chin in thought. "You know, I think you might be in luck. One of our English teachers down at the middle school quit recently. Family issues, I guess. They've been looking for someone to take her place."

The man sat up straight in his chair and placed his hands on Kakashi's shoulders, his eyes filled with a sudden intensity. "Who do I talk to? Do you have their number? Can I call them tonight?"

Kakashi laughed and gently pushed the man's hands to the side. "I don't think they'd be up now – it's almost two in the morning. If you don't mind waiting a few days, you can come in with me on Monday – I'll put in a good word for you."

"Oh, thank you so much! You have no idea how much this means to me!" the man exclaimed, tears of joy welling in his eyes. "How can I ever repay you?"

"Well, you can give me your name, for starters. We'll figure the rest out later," Kakashi said, extending a hand to the man. "I'm Kakashi Hatake."

"Iruka Umino," the man replied, shaking Kakashi's hand vigorously. "Oh, I have to call my son! He'll be so happy to hear this."

_Iruka… now where have I heard that name before?_

As Iruka began to dig in his pocket for a cell phone, Kakashi placed a hand on his shoulder, causing the man to look up in surprise. "I think you'd better wait on that – I'm sure it's been a long day for both of you. Just head over there first thing in the morning and explain what happened – it'll be easier that way."

Considering this for a moment, Iruka slid the phone back in his pocket with a sigh. "Yeah, you're probably right. Let me at least give you my number, then."

"That won't be necessary – just tell me what hotel you're staying at. I'll ask for you at the front desk," Kakashi said as he placed a few bills on the bar for his and Iruka's drinks. When he heard only silence, however, the teacher grew concerned. "You do have a hotel room, don't you?"

"Well… with money the way it is, I've actually been sleeping in my car," Iruka admitted as he and Kakashi headed out the door.

Kakashi smiled and pulled out his wallet once again. He placed a few larger bills in the man's hand. "Take this, then, and go find a room down at the Konoha Inn. It's not the nicest place, but it's more comfortable than your car seat."

"N-no, I can't possibly take this," Iruka stammered, staring at the bills in shock.

"Sure you can. Just promise to pay me back sometime," Kakashi said, a smirk visible through his mask. "Now, I'll swing by on Monday to pick you up, all right? Until then, get some sleep. You need it."

"Thank you so much, Kakashi," Iruka said simply as he climbed into his car. After fumbling with his keys for a moment, he drove off, leaving Kakashi waving to him from the curb. He only stopped waving once the car had disappeared around the corner, at which point he tucked his hands into his pants pockets.

_Iruka Umino, huh? I just loaned fifty bucks to him when I've only known him for ten minutes… and I promised him a job! Maybe Sasuke was right… maybe I _am_ ready to move on._

* * *

Kakashi to the rescue! Yay! So, looks like things might work out after all, plus we can see some feelings growing in everyone's favorite masked teacher. How will Naruto react to this sudden change of plans? And what about Sasuke? How does he _really_ feel about his awkward first meeting with Iruka? All this and more in the next chapter of _For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him_!


	25. I Am Leaving, I Am Leaving

Okay, sorry about the delay, folks. This chapter gave me a lot of trouble, and I don't know why. Call it writer's block, I guess. Anyway, it's done, and I hope you enjoy it. I want to thank all of you for reading, as usual, and especially for reviewing. Any and all comments are helpful. Now, without further ado, on with the chapter!

* * *

25. I Am Leaving, I Am Leaving…

Sasuke Uchiha lay sprawled out on his bed, the covers crumpled in a heap on the floor next to a pile of discarded clothes. He was sweating profusely, and his breathing was heavy and hurried. Glancing up above him, the Uchiha could clearly see the face of a very naked Naruto Uzumaki, his eyes closed in concentration and sweat running down his brow. His breathing was similarly forced. With every thrust of the blond's hips, he let out a grunt, which consequently caused Sasuke to moan in painful ecstasy. Though Sasuke tried to keep his eyes fixed on Naruto, wanting nothing more than to watch his boyfriend in the throes of love, the Uchiha's body continued to override his brain with waves of pleasure, forcing him to seal his eyes shut as he let out another moan.

"Naruto," the raven-haired teen grunted as the aforementioned blond thrust once again.

"Sasuke," the Naruto said in turn, biting his lip in concentration, "Are you ready?"

The Uchiha nodded simply, his body already shuddering with pleasure.

"All right… here it goes!"

xxxxx

The alarm rang.

Startled, Sasuke reached over for his clock and yanked it out of the wall, silencing the aggravating beeping once and for all. Chucking the object across the room in frustration, the Uchiha collapsed back onto his pillow, hoping he could somehow relapse into his wonderful dream. After shutting his eyes for a few moments, however, he realized it was too late – his perfect night of passion with Naruto was gone. Sitting up in his bed, he snarled at the now-broken clock on the floor.

"Hope you're happy…"

Truth be told, Sasuke was more than a little embarrassed about the dream. Yes, he had thoroughly enjoyed… being intimate with Naruto on Friday night. He loved it, in fact. Sharing that kind of pleasure with someone he truly cared about had been ideal, and he was anxious to see Naruto again so he could tell the blond just that. But, naturally, their titillating adventure had brought on some unintended side effects. Ever since that night, Sasuke found his mind wandering to the thought of sex far more frequently than he'd like. Any time he lost focus, he'd inevitably think back to that night, lying naked beside Naruto, or possibly even go a step further. All these thoughts were apparently building towards the dream from which he'd just been rudely awakened, which, one could say, had been the 'climax.'

Kicking off the covers and sliding out of bed, Sasuke glanced down at himself to find his boxerbriefs with a distinct, wet patch in the front. He blushed and decided to head to the bathroom as quickly as possible. There, he removed the stained underwear and hopped into the shower, which he turned on to an ice-cold temperature.

_God… now he's giving me wet dreams? What the hell's wrong with me?_

Grabbing a nearby bottle of shower gel, Sasuke began to lather up, paying particularly close attention to that troublesome area down south. He didn't regret what had happened on Friday night – the evening had been one of the more enjoyable experiences the Uchiha could remember. At the same time, though, Sasuke felt a bit… uneasy. Not so much about advancing his relationship with Naruto, but more about expanding that relationship to include new members.

In particular, there was Iruka.

Yes, that had been an awkward day. To think he'd end up meeting Naruto's dad in his birthday suit, just after waking up from a night of passion with his son. He hadn't known quite what to do. At first he thought he and Naruto were busted – that the jig was up, and it was all going to be over before it could even get off the ground. Fortunately, Iruka was apparently missing a few brain cells, because he bought whatever lie Naruto told him without any question.

_But… then again, that's what bothers me the most. He seemed like a pretty smart guy – he knew just when to step in during that conversation with Kiba's mom. Very observant… so why didn't he notice what was going on between me and Naruto?_

Indeed, that was the Uchiha's main fear – that Iruka _had _seen what was going on. That as soon as he saw Sasuke in Naruto's bed, Iruka had reached the inevitable conclusion in an instant. But if that was the case, why didn't he say anything? Was he just waiting to be alone with Naruto, so he wouldn't make a scene?

_That's why Naruto hasn't called since then, either – Iruka saw what was going on and freaked out. How would Naruto react to that? He's not the type to just take it sitting down – he probably argued with Iruka and stormed out. But where would he have gone?_

The obvious answer was Sasuke's house. After all, they were boyfriends – they were supposed to trust each other with these kinds of things. But, then again, Iruka would make that assumption as well, and Naruto would know that. If that was the case, then there were only a few other options.

Gaara was a possibility, though Sasuke doubted Naruto would head there first. After all, their friendship had only started a few weeks ago, and it had only been a few days since their uncomfortable kiss. No – Gaara was out of the question. Lee? He was somewhat more likely, though Naruto would be more likely to go to someone he had a closer connection to. This left only one option, and Sasuke felt certain that, if Naruto went anywhere, it was there.

_Guess it's time to give Shikamaru a call…_

Shutting off the water, Sasuke stepped out of the steamy shower and grabbed a towel, which he used to vigorously wipe off the excess drippings. Once he was relatively dry, the Uchiha wrapped the towel around his waist and headed for his bedroom, where he tossed the towel onto the bed. Then, scrounging around in his dresser, Sasuke found a suitable outfit for the day – black tee, khaki shorts, and a pair of black boxerbriefs – and got dressed. He then collapsed onto his bed, reached for his cell phone, and opened up his barren address book. It contained but two numbers – Naruto's and Shikamaru's. He highlighted Shikamaru's name, pressed the 'call' button, and pressed the phone to his ear, his heart already beating rapidly in his chest.

_Come on… pick up!_

The phone rang several times – five, six, seven – before finally there was a click on the other end, followed by an irritated, "Hello?"

"Shikamaru – is Naruto there?" Sasuke asked almost immediately, as if his tongue was acting on its own.

"What? No, he's not here," Shikamaru replied groggily – clearly he had been asleep. "What's the matter, Sasuke?"

"Damn, I thought for sure he'd be there," Sasuke muttered, already trying to think of where to check next. "Did he say anything to you yesterday? Like, where he'd be or something?"

"Sasuke, I haven't heard from him since Friday," the Nara said, pausing for a moment before continuing. "Did something happen with the two of you?"

"No – well, I don't think so… I don't know!" Sasuke stammered in frustration. "He hasn't been answering his phone since yesterday, and I'm worried that something's wrong."

Shikamaru chuckled, "Since when were you such a worrywart?"

"I'm serious, Shikamaru!" Sasuke snapped, pressing a hand to his forehead. "I don't know what happened to him."

"Look, I didn't mean to offend you. I just thought it was nice to see you so concerned," the Nara said with a sigh. "Now, look, I know you're hiding something from me – you wouldn't be this upset for no reason. What happened?"

_Damn, he's good…_

"Naruto's dad came by yesterday."

"So? It's Parents' Weekend, isn't it?"

"I was still there… from the night before," Sasuke admitted with a sinking feeling in his gut.

"Ah… that explains a lot," Shikamaru murmured, taking a moment to think things through. "How much does he know?"

"That's what's making me so confused! The whole time he was there, he was acting completely oblivious – it was like he couldn't put two and two together."

"Well, how obvious were you two being? Maybe the two of you were more subtle than you think," the lazy genius continued in an attempt to reason with his friend.

"He saw me naked in his bed, Shikamaru. I don't think it gets any more obvious than that," Sasuke blurted out, only to regret it almost immediately.

A rustle on the other end of the line revealed that Shikamaru was shifting in bed, ready to get in a more comfortable position. He resumed speaking in a more serious tone. "Wait – you didn't say anything about being naked. Just what exactly were you and Naruto doing the other night?"

"It's not what you think, I swear!" Sasuke said hastily, trying to keep the Nara from jumping to any conclusions. "I mean… well, we didn't go that far."

"I'd hope not. That would be quite a jump," Shikamaru replied with a relieved sigh. "You know you can tell me about this kind of stuff, right? I'm your best friend – it's what I'm here for."

"Yeah, I know – but I'd rather not discuss my sex life at all, you know? It's just… awkward," the Uchiha said, pausing afterwards. "Look, basically what happened is Naruto woke up first. He was walking around in his boxers when his dad knocked on the door. Naruto let him in, and his dad just barged into the bedroom picking up dirty laundry."

"Ah – a neat freak. My mom did the same thing when she stopped by yesterday."

"Then he decided he wanted to do the bedding as well, so he tore the sheets off, and… there I was."

"In all your glory," Shikamaru chuckled.

"Exactly! How Naruto managed to talk his way out of that one is beyond me. What would you say if you found a naked guy sleeping in your son's bed?"

"Hard to say. I don't have a son," the Nara deadpanned. "I can imagine I'd be inclined to believe my son's explanation, though. If I've had no reason to suspect that my son is gay, then I probably wouldn't jump to that conclusion at the first sign. It might set off a red flag, but not enough to make me completely freak out."

"So you think he might suspect something?" Sasuke asked in a worried tone.

"He might, but then again, he might not. I'm not Naruto's dad, all right? I don't know what he's thinking. Maybe he was just distracted by something else, and wasn't thinking all that clearly."

"But what if he was just waiting for me to leave? What if he talked to Naruto about all this after I was gone, and forbade him from seeing me ever again? What if it's all over, Shikamaru?" the Uchiha exclaimed, his voice racing as he tried to squeeze all the words into a single breath.

"Is that what this is about?" Shikamaru asked, as if having a 'eureka' moment. "You're afraid he's gonna be taken away from you?"

"I don't want to lose him…"

Shikamaru paused, letting out a long breath. "He's really got a hold on you, huh?"

"No thanks to you," Sasuke joked weakly.

"Well, first of all, you're an idiot for thinking Naruto would let you go that easily," the Nara stated bluntly. "He cares about you just as much as you do, so what makes you think he'd just abandon you because his dad says so?"

"I… I don't know! Why isn't he answering his phone then?"

"There're all kinds of explanations. Maybe he's out of batteries? Maybe he can't talk with his dad there – you just have to take a minute and think about it, okay?"

Sasuke thought about it and, much to his chagrin, concluded that Shikamaru was right. "So… should I just go over there, you think?"

"Just wait, Sasuke. Naruto will see that you called fifty times or whatever. If something really is wrong, he'll talk to you about it when he's ready. If you keep pressuring him it'll only make things harder."

"Yeah, but if I don't hear from him soon, it's only going to make things harder on me. Not exactly a fair trade," Sasuke pouted, glaring at the phone as he spoke.

"Hey, when you're in love, you have to make some sacrifices," Shikamaru said flippantly. "I mean, I gave up smoking because Temari told me to. Thems the breaks."

"Oh, I forgot to ask about that – how'd the date go?" Sasuke asked, feeling suddenly ashamed for forgetting.

"It was nice. All in all, I'd say it was a success," the Nara continued nonchalantly.

Sasuke hesitated. Something was wrong with his friend's response, but he couldn't quite put a finger on it. "You're hiding something. What happened between you two?"

"We… may have kissed…"

Sasuke's eyes narrowed, a smirk crossing his lips. "Oh, I see how it is. I'm supposed to be all open about my relationship, but here you've been holding out on me the whole time!"

"You never asked," Shikamaru said simply, causing Sasuke to fume on the other end.

"Touché," the Uchiha muttered with a frown. "But seriously, did things get… heated?"

"We didn't get as far as you and Naruto did, if that's what you're asking," the Nara replied smugly.

Sasuke blushed. "Hey! Don't go around talking about that…"

"Oh, so shy," Shikamaru continued, only to hear uneasy silence on the other end. He sighed. "Fine, your secret's safe with me. I can't even believe I need to say it."

"I know… call me paranoid…"

"You're paranoid."

Ignoring the other teen's interruption, Sasuke continued in mild irritation, "But after what happened this weekend, I've been a bit on edge. You understand."

"Yeah, I get it, I get it – you really need to calm down, though. There's nothing you can do about Naruto's dad. If he knows something, then he knows something. Getting all worked up over it isn't going to solve anything, okay?"

Sasuke considered his friend's words for a moment, fighting between his concern for Naruto, and Shikamaru's concern for him. Finally, he conceded, closing his eyes as he spoke. "Fine – I'll try."

"Good," Shikamaru concluded, sounding quite relieved. "You know how Naruto is – when he's ready, he'll seek you out himself, and he _will _find you."

_He's got a point…_

Resisting an urge to laugh out loud, Sasuke decided to end the conversation in a genial tone. "All right. In that case, I'd better go – he could be here any minute."

"Good idea. He has a habit of showing up at the most unexpected times – troublesome kid…"

"I'll talk to you later, Shikamaru."

"See you," the Nara said with finality before setting his phone back on the receiver, leaving Sasuke with only a faint dial tone buzzing in his ear.

Setting his phone back on the nightstand, Sasuke stared up at the ceiling, letting his conversation with Shikamaru sink in. He knew the Nara was right – whatever was going on between Naruto and Iruka, if anything, was between them. There was nothing he could do about it, so there was no sense in fretting over it. Even with that knowledge, though, Sasuke couldn't shake the sinking feeling in his gut.

_There's just something about the way Iruka was acting… I mean, I don't really know him, so maybe he's always like that, but it seemed like there was something on his mind. Something big. It was like he was overacting like Naruto does sometimes… when he's trying to hide something from me._

It was all speculation, of course. Sasuke had assumed that Iruka was just trying to hide his knowledge of Naruto's relationship with the Uchiha, but now that seemed less likely. The more he thought about it, the more Sasuke found himself thinking that Iruka didn't seem angry or uncomfortable – more troubled. Whatever he was hiding went far beyond just him and Naruto, and that worried Sasuke.

_I just have to stay calm… whatever it is, Naruto will tell me when I'm ready. I just have to be patient…_

Almost as soon as this thought crossed the raven-haired teen's mind, however, he found his hand lunging for his phone, and soon he had Naruto's name highlighted on his address book. He stared at the number for a moment, a bit of sweat forming on his head. Was there really a point in calling Naruto for the umpteenth time in the past 24 hours? It would only go straight to voicemail again, forcing Sasuke to leave yet another awkward message.

"What the hell's wrong with me? I went my whole life without seeing him until a few weeks ago. Why can't I just wait a day?" Sasuke snapped before tossing his phone across the room, sending it flying into the remains of his alarm clock.

Collapsing back onto his pillow, Sasuke ran a hand down his face in misery. He lasted all of five minutes after calling Shikamaru, and already he was suffering from Naruto withdrawal.

_I can't do it… I'm gonna snap if he doesn't call soon!_

As if the heavens were answering the Uchiha's plea, there was suddenly a chime that could be heard throughout the house, signaling that someone was waiting at the door. Instantly, Sasuke hopped off the bed and rushed to the door, only to freeze as his hand touched the brass knob.

_Wait… I have to wait. Why would he come here in person, anyway? Think rationally, Sasuke!_

Shaking his head, Sasuke returned to his bed, trying to act as calmly as possible. He reached over to his nightstand and grabbed his DS before flipping it open, hoping a game could distract him for a least a moment. Soon, _Scribblenauts _was up and running, and Sasuke found himself entering in random items on the title screen.

_Let's see… Cthulu vs. God vs… Ninja… Fox… Ramen…_

Staring at the assortment of creatures and food onscreen trying to beat one another into submission, Sasuke cursed himself. He barely made it fifty seconds this time. Shutting off the power and closing the DS in a huff, Sasuke set the device back on his nightstand and began to twiddle his thumbs. Below, he could hear someone opening the door – most likely Itachi – though he couldn't hear any voices as much as he strained to listen in. Soon, he heard footsteps pounding on the stairs, followed by three distinct knocks on his door. He knew that knock well.

"What is it, Itachi?" the Uchiha grumbled, trying to mask his eagerness.

"Your boy toy's here, Sasuke. Looks like he didn't get enough the other night," Itachi said, opening the door a crack. "Better come down before he decides to run up here and ravish you."

"Fine, fine – I'll be there in a sec," Sasuke muttered as he rolled off the bed, completely ignoring his brother's provocation.

Following Itachi out the door and downstairs, Sasuke held his breath. Somehow he didn't think it would be possible for Naruto to actually be there until he saw the blond himself – for all he knew, Itachi could just be playing some nasty prank on him. As soon as Sasuke saw those locks of sunshine waiting in the doorway, though, he let out a sigh of relief – he was still there. He hadn't left him. Not yet, at least.

"Naruto? What're you doing here?" Sasuke asked in obvious feigned shock as he descended the stairs.

"I need to talk to you, Sasuke. In private," Naruto said, indicating to Itachi, his voice barely above a whisper.

"Oh, don't mind me. You two just go have a little chat in the living room, and I'll prepare some tea," Itachi said playfully as he walked towards the kitchen. "After all, I've been dying to get to know the great Naruto in person – seems like Sasuke's been talking about you nonstop these past few weeks."

Once the elder Uchiha had disappeared around the corner, Sasuke turned to his befuddled boyfriend shook his head. "Just ignore him. He likes to try and make my life a living hell."

Together, Sasuke and Naruto headed into the living room, where they took a seat on the beige sofa. They were silent for a few moments, giving Sasuke enough time to study his boyfriend's expression. It wasn't encouraging.

_Something's definitely wrong. It's written all over his face… those eyes – he clearly didn't sleep last night. And they're so red… is he tired? No, that's not it… he's been crying. What's going on?_

"Naruto… is everything okay?" Sasuke asked finally, leaning forward to get a better look at the blond.

There was a pause as Naruto bit his lip, his eyes already beginning to water. "Sasuke… it's my dad…"

_Oh god – his dad's dying! I didn't even consider that…_

"What about him?" the Uchiha asked, hoping his hunch was wrong.

"He lost his job," Naruto said, his voice cracking as he fought back the tears.

"Is that all?" Sasuke asked, chuckling in relief. He placed a hand on the blond's shoulder. "There's no need to get all emotional over that, Naruto. Sure the economy's not that great, but I'm sure he'll find a job. You just need to be supportive."

Naruto shook his head vigorously, tears trickling down his cheeks. "I know that, Sasuke. I'm sure he'll find a job… but until then, he can't afford to send me to Konoha High. Do you understand?"

The blood ran from Sasuke's face, and he simply stared wide-eyed at his boyfriend, suddenly wishing he'd been right before. "You don't mean…"

With a nod, Naruto looked the Uchiha in the eye for the first time. "I'm leaving."

Sasuke was silent, his eyes losing focus as he became overwhelmed with conflicting emotions. Naruto was leaving? After all Shikamaru had said about not worrying, it turned out Sasuke's fears were coming true? It was ludicrous!

Suddenly, as if his brain could think only of this irony, the Uchiha laughed. "You're joking, right? Shikamaru put you up to this. Did he call you earlier?"

"Sasuke," Naruto said with a sniffle, causing his boyfriend to stop midsentence. "I'm serious. That's why my dad came today – he's taking me back to Mizu tonight."

With a few chuckles still escaping, Sasuke kept his gaze fixed on Naruto, though his smile quickly faded. He couldn't fool himself anymore – everything about the way Naruto was acting told him this was the truth. This was the end – in a few hours, his boyfriend would be taken away from him, and he'd be alone again.

_Alone… I should've known this would happen. This is just God's way of mocking me… letting me think I finally have a chance at happiness before having it jerked away from me…_

Suddenly, Sasuke's self pity switched to determination, his eyes suddenly sparkling with intensity.

_No! I've come too far to let it go this easily. There has to be something we can do…_

"Have you tried talking to the school? Maybe they can set up some kind of payment plan," Sasuke asked hurriedly, his mind racing with thoughts.

"It wouldn't matter – until my dad has a steady job again, he's not going to risk going in debt by sending me here…"

"Well… what about a scholarship?"

This suggestion was met only by a glare from Naruto. "I hardly think I'd meet their standards, Sasuke. I've consistently been in the bottom of our class for the past two years."

Frustrated, Sasuke struggled to come up with another possible solution, though none of them seemed likely to help. Blackmail the staff? But with what? Everyone already knew Tsunade had extensive gambling debts and plastic surgery, and she was the one they'd have to blackmail. Maybe they could just hide Naruto for a while – keep him in the basement… no, that wouldn't work either. How would Naruto go to school, then? Even if he's not the sharpest knife in the drawer, the blond still needed an education.

_There's nothing I can do… he's… really leaving._

"Sorry to interrupt you two, but I think I might have a solution."

Glancing up in surprise, Sasuke found Itachi sitting in a chair on the opposite side of the room, sipping on a steaming cup of tea. He set the glass down on a coaster and crossed his legs, watching the teenage couple intently. "Why don't we just keep Naruto here for a while? We have plenty of room."

"You don't understand, Itachi – he doesn't have enough money to go to school here," Sasuke replied curtly, shooting his brother a quick glare.

_What does he think he's doing? Can't he just leave us alone?_

"Sasuke, in case you've forgotten, I'm at the head of one of the biggest corporations in the country. Money is not an issue," Itachi said, chuckling in mild amusement.

Naruto's eyes widened, wiping some of the moisture from his cheeks. "R-really? You'd do that for me?"

"Of course," the elder Uchiha answered with a slow nod. "It's the least I can do for my little brother."

"Itachi… we're trying to keep what's going on between me and Naruto a secret. I think it'll be hard for his dad to ignore it if we're suddenly paying for his tuition," Sasuke interrupted, clearly aggravated by Itachi's lack of concern.

"Oh, you're so picky, Sasuke. Look, if you're really that worried about it, I'll just say that Naruto won a scholarship from the Akatsuki Corporation. It wouldn't be that farfetched – we're trying to soften our image a bit, since the public tends to see us as power hungry merchants of death."

Sasuke struggled to find some hole in the plan, but as he thought it over, he began to realize that this could actually work. He turned to Naruto, who still seemed stunned by the whole ordeal, and clasped the blond's hand.

"Naruto… it's your decision."

The vulpine boy's face maintained a look of disbelief as he turned to face Itachi. "You mean you're serious?"

"Why so skeptical, Naruto? You're my brother's boyfriend, right? That practically makes you family."

His eyes watering once again, Naruto spun back to face Sasuke and, in an instant, pounced upon his boyfriend. With his arms wrapped tightly around his prey, Naruto buried his head in the Uchiha's chest and let the tears of elation flow. It was not long until Sasuke's shirt was damp, though by that point he was crying openly as well, his tears falling onto that wonderful golden mess of hair.

"Oh, Sasuke! This is incredible!" Naruto said, lifting his head to gaze at the other teen. "I was afraid I'd lose you…"

"Me too," the Uchiha said with a smirk, running a hand through his boyfriend's hair. "I thought for sure I'd end up all alone again…"

With a big grin, Naruto lunged forward and met the Uchiha in a kiss – one that Sasuke was more than happy to return, despite Itachi's immediate presence. It was only a short kiss, after which they both pulled out and simply let the tears of joy flow, with Naruto resting his head on Sasuke's shoulder, each pulling the other into a tight embrace.

It was in this position that, for whatever reason, Sasuke felt a sudden pang of guilt. Something about this didn't seem right, and it caused the raven-haired teen's euphoria to fade to distress.

_What am I doing? This is what I want, right? I get to stay with Naruto, and he gets to stay in school – it's what we both want! So what's this strange feeling like I'm forgetting something…_

Then it hit him – Iruka. Sure, Sasuke could keep Naruto all to himself, but deep down the Uchiha knew that Iruka needed him more. He saw how shaken up Iruka had been on Saturday – he knew the man was taking his recent unemployment hard. Sure, he would probably be overjoyed if Naruto could continue his schooling at Konoha… but Sasuke had no doubt that Iruka wanted to be with Naruto as well. If they told Iruka about their new arrangement – that Naruto would be staying in Konoha, with Itachi footing the bill – he probably wouldn't resist. He'd put on a good front and support the situation. But deep down it would eat him up – knowing that his son had replaced him.

_I can't do that to him… I know what it's like to have Naruto – the joy that comes with it, and the frustration. But I also know what it's like to be alone… I wouldn't wish that on anyone…_

"Naruto… we can't do this," Sasuke whispered, the words stabbing into his heart even as they left his lips.

The blond's head shot up, his eyes meeting the Uchiha's in confusion. "What are you talking about? Itachi just said it's okay – what's the problem?"

"It's your dad," Sasuke began, averting his gaze. "He needs you now… more than I do…"

"But… _I _need you," Naruto replied, his lip quivering in panic.

That hurt. Sasuke couldn't even look at the blond anymore, and instead close his eyes tight, telling himself over and over again that this was the right thing to do. "I know… but he's your dad, Naruto. He needs you there with him when times are tough."

Naruto appeared hurt – and not without good reason. "So you're saying it doesn't matter what I think? You don't care how I feel? How hard this is going to be on me?"

Every word from the blond cut deeper and deeper into Sasuke, until he could barely offer a response. "That's not true… I do care. It's not easy for me either, you know – but we have to make this sacrifice."

Chewing on his lips, Naruto looked away, trying to think of some other solution. "Can't we just talk to him first? Maybe just ask him what he thinks?"

"You know he wouldn't resist, whether he was okay with it or not," Sasuke replied, shaking his head solemnly. "He can't know about this, or else he'll feel even worse than he does."

As Naruto thought this over, a phone began to ring in the distance. Setting down his tea, Itachi rose and started for the kitchen, whispering, "I'll get that."

Relieved that his brother had left the room, Sasuke pulled Naruto closer into an embrace, trying hard to console his frustrated boyfriend. "Look… it's only for a little while. Just till your dad finds another job, right? And I can come and visit – I have a car – I can drive out there on the weekends or something. We'll make it work."

Of course, even as Sasuke thought the words, he doubted their sincerity. Yes, he could drive out to visit Naruto, but would it be the same? That distance would put a strain on their relationship and he knew it. Sure, they'd start by calling each other every night, but how long would that last? How long until it became every other day? And then once a week? As much as Sasuke hated to think about it, there was a good chance that this obstacle would be the wedge to drive the two of them apart once and for all.

Naruto seemed to understand this as well, burying his face into Sasuke's damp shirt once more. "It's just not fair… things were going so well…"

Sasuke made no response, but simply held Naruto for a moment, trying to control his own emotions while soothing the blond's. It was an uphill battle, though. With every stroke of Naruto's hair, Sasuke felt his body tremble from a combination of anger and sorrow.

_Maybe I'm just destined to be alone…_

"Umm… excuse me, Naruto?"

Glancing up, Sasuke and Naruto found Itachi standing in the entryway, holding the phone in his hand. He was met with a glare from the younger Uchiha. "Do you mind, Itachi?"

"I wasn't talking to you, brother," Itachi answered dismissively before turning back to Naruto. "The phone's for you, Naruto. Sounds like your dad."

"Tell him I don't want to talk to him," Naruto said curtly, his eyes red from tears.

"I think you should hear him out. It sounded like good news," Itachi replied before tossing the phone onto the couch.

Staring at the phone cautiously, Naruto picked it up and held it to his ear. He swallowed hard, steadying his voice before speaking. "H-hello?"

Though Sasuke couldn't make out what exactly Iruka was saying on the other line, he could hear the man's excited voice blaring in the speakers as Naruto's eyes widened. Instead of relaying whatever news the man had, however, Naruto remained perfectly silent, apparently overwhelmed by whatever he had heard.

"Well? What is it?"

Naruto looked to Sasuke, his eyes watering in joy. "He found a job. Here – in Konoha."

Sasuke's heart skipped a beat. Had his ears deceived him? "A job? Already?"

"Yes! Apparently someone at the school said they'd put in a good word for him. They've been looking for a new teacher at the middle school, and so far there haven't been any qualified applicants. He's going in tomorrow for an interview," Naruto exclaimed before another buzzing voice came through the speaker. After listening for a moment, the blond nodded and spoke up, "All right, Dad. I'll be there in a few minutes. Bye."

Clicking the phone off, Naruto dropped it on the ground and kissed Sasuke on the lips before rising to his feet. Shocked by all that had happened, Sasuke simply watched the blond rush to the foyer, where he grabbed his shoes.

"I'm sorry, Sasuke, but I have to go. Apparently he's been trying to call me all morning, and he wants to go out to dinner to celebrate. We'll talk more tomorrow, okay?" the blond asked, hopping on one foot as he pulled on his shoes.

"It's fine. Go get him, tiger," Sasuke replied with a smirk, resting his head on the armrest of the couch.

With a grin, Naruto bolted out the door, leaving the Uchiha brothers alone in the living room. As Sasuke adjusted himself on the couch and sighed with relief, Itachi took a seat back on the opposite side of the room and resumed sipping his tea.

"'Tiger,' huh?" Itachi murmured, his eyes closed in silent contemplation.

Without missing a beat, Sasuke hurled the nearby phone across the room at his brother, who simply tilted his head to the side as it crashed into the wall. Setting his tea down, Itachi chuckled and retrieved the now-defective phone.

"That's coming out of your allowance, I'll have you know."

Seething in anger, Sasuke covered his face with a throw pillow and laid back in exhaustion. "Go to hell, Itachi."

"I love you, too."

On that note, Itachi disappeared back into the kitchen, leaving Sasuke alone once again to his thoughts. Rather than reflect on the complicated day, however, the Uchiha decided instead to get some rest, closing his eyes tightly beneath the shelter of his pillow.

_Another crisis narrowly averted…_

* * *

And there you have it! Hope you guys enjoyed it! Now that Naruto actually knows about his fate in Konoha, how will his relationship with Sasuke develop? And what about Iruka's interview at the Middle School? Will Kakashi be able to make everything work out? Find out in the next installment of _For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him!_


	26. My Love Lies Waiting Silently For Me

All right, dear readers, here's chapter 26. This is definitely a transition chapter, leading to a new phase in the story, so I apologize if it's not the most eventful part of the story. Still, I hope you'll enjoy it, as well as the taste of things to come. As usual, I thank you all for reading, and especially thank those who reviewed. All comments help! Anyway, on with the chapter!

* * *

26. Where My Love Lies Waiting Silently For Me

Kakashi Hatake sat in the main office at Konoha Middle School that Monday morning, reading one of his hentai novels – or at least attempting to. There was no one else in the office save a single, elderly secretary, who would occasionally glance up from her work and frown disapprovingly at the silver-haired man's choice of reading. Truth be told, though, Kakashi barely even noticed the woman, but only looked in her general direction every few minutes to peek at the clock on the wall.

_How long does it take to do an interview, honestly?_

Sure, it had only been a couple of minutes – ten to fifteen at the most – but the anticipation was killing Kakashi. He'd told Iruka this job was a sure thing, but he was not nearly as confident in his words as he would've liked. Sure, he had some connections at the middle school – Obito had taught there for a year before he died, so Kakashi always felt a sort of bond with the school. At the same time, though, Kakashi had never worked there himself, so his ties to the key authority figures were shaky at best.

Of course, there was also the problem of Iruka.

_What was I thinking? I just met him… what, Saturday night? And somehow I'm supposed to get him a job? Sure, his kid is probably a student of mine, but what kind of qualification is that? 'Yes, he's perfect for the job! I met him at the bar, and his kid attends Konoha High. What's that? Can he teach? Well… he reads… I think…'_

Shaking his head, Kakashi tried to distract himself by reading a few lines of the novel. It was one of his favorites, written under one of Officer Jiraiya's numerous pseudonyms, but he just couldn't get into it. His current circumstances were just too pressing to be ignored.

Why had he even agreed to help Iruka in the first place? Sure, Kakashi had sympathized with him. He knew how it felt to have your kid hate you – well, not his kid, but close enough. Sasuke could certainly be a handful at times…

That wasn't Kakashi's main motive, though, and he knew it. Maybe it was because of the conversation he had with Sasuke in the teacher's lounge – that talk about moving on and trying to love again – or maybe it was just a coincidence. Whatever the case, Kakashi had felt something for Iruka the moment he saw him. Something in the man's eyes as he sat down at the bar told Kakashi that he had seen a lot in his life – loss, hardship… things he could relate to. Of course, Iruka wasn't exactly ugly, either. That didn't hurt.

_What am I thinking? I just met this guy! How desperate am I?_

Glancing back up at the clock, Kakashi found it was half past seven. He was supposed to have been in class fifteen minutes ago – not that there was anything unusual about that. More importantly, Iruka had been in there talking to the principal for twenty minutes. What could possibly be taking him so long?

_I don't care if it's desperation. I need to know!_

Clapping his book shut, Kakashi shoved the dirty novel into his back pocket and rose from his chair, eyeing the door to Principal Koharu Utatane's office anxiously. Finally, he approached the elderly woman at the front desk, leanining on the counter in an attempt to look as casual as possible.

"Excuse me, ma'am? Do you know how much longer they're going to be in there?"

"I'm sorry, but Principal Utatane likes to examine her applicants thoroughly. She wouldn't want to let any shady characters in by our students," the woman said with a forced cough as she eyed Kakashi's novel in disgust.

"Well, I can certainly understand that. But isn't she desperate for someone to fill the position?"

"Of course she's anxious to find a new teacher as quickly as possible, but that doesn't mean she's going to just hire the first person to walk through the door," the secretary replied with a chuckle as she made a note on a pad of paper. "Why's it so important to you, anyway? Is that young man in there a friend of yours?"

"You could say that, I guess," Kakashi replied, biting his lip behind his mask.

_Did I act too quickly? What if he doesn't get the job? It'll crush him… I shouldn't have promised something like that when I knew I couldn't deliver!_

Suddenly, there was a faint creak. Kakashi's eyes darted to Principal Utatane's office, where he found it squeaking open. His heart stopped. Was it good news? Was it bad news? What was it?

Then he heard it – laughter. Iruka emerged from the door moments later, waving a sheet of paper triumphantly as he waved at the principal. "Thank you so much, Ms. Utatane. You won't regret this, I swear!"

"Nonsense, I'm just relieved we found such a qualified candidate so quickly. I'm sure you'll need some time to pack up your things, correct?" Utatane continued, her wrinkled eyes just barely squinting at the grinning Iruka.

"Well, yes, I guess all of my things are back in Mizu," the brunet replied with a concerned frown. "It shouldn't take me long, though. Just a few days at most…"

"Great, we'll see you next Monday, then. I already have a substitute schedule for the rest of the week," Utatane interrupted with a smile. Her face grew serious quite suddenly, however, catching the young teacher off guard. "Don't be late."

"I-I won't. Thank you again, ma'am!"

With that, Iruka rushed out of the office, nearly plowing over Kakashi, who had been waiting with his arms crossed just a few feet away. The silver-haired man looked down at his fellow teacher with one of his trademark smiles as he placed a hand on the other's shoulder. "I take it it's good news, then?"

"I got the job! Oh, thank you so much, Kakashi! I don't know how to thank you!" Iruka said, pulling the other man into a tight embrace. Moments later, he realized what exactly he was doing and quickly let go of Kakashi, scratching his head sheepishly. "S-sorry about that. I got a bit overexcited, I guess."

"No need to apologize – I'm just happy this whole thing worked out," Kakashi chuckled as he and Iruka stepped out of the office and into the main hallway. "You have no idea how nervous I was in there."

"How nervous _you _were? Think about how _I _felt!" Iruka exclaimed, causing them both to laugh wholeheartedly. Once they'd regained their composure, however, the man continued in a more somber tone, saying, "I really don't know what to say, though. If I didn't get this job…"

"Look, it's nothing really," Kakashi interrupted, patting the brunet on the back. "If you really want to make it up to me, you can meet me at dinner later this week, how about that?"

_Am I serious?_

"Dinner? You're serious?" Iruka asked, his eyes widening a bit.

Hastily thinking up an excuse for his little slip, Kakashi found himself laughing overenthusiastically. "Of course! We only really know each other from a few minutes at the bar, right? Might as well get to know each other, since I'm the only person you know in town. Am I wrong?"

"Well… no, not really…"

"Perfect, then! By the way, if you need any help moving in to your new apartment, just say the word. As long as it's after school, of course."

Iruka froze in his tracks, his face pale. "Apartment… I didn't even think about that! I don't even have a place to live in town!"

Kakashi sighed and shook his head, a smile hiding beneath his mask. "I should've known. Look, I know there aren't any places nearby with available rooms, but there's probably a few down on the other side of town. I'm sure you'll find one in your price range – if you don't mind a bit of a commute, that is."

Iruka looked relieved as they stepped out into the parking lot, where the sun was just poking through the clouds. "I'll start searching today. Thanks again."

"No problem. Just don't forget about our dinner, all right? I'll be expecting a call," Kakashi concluded as he waved to his friend and started for his car.

"Don't worry, I won't!" Iruka called back, heading in the opposite direction.

Kakashi watched for a moment as Iruka hopped into his car and drove away, a smile glued to his face. Once the other man was out of sight, however, the silver-haired climbed into his car and sighed.

_So… I have a date – except he doesn't know it yet… I'll have to remember to thank Sasuke later…_

xxxxx

Later that day, Naruto and Kiba sat in their apartment, playing _Soulcalibur _on their PS2. It was all for fun – a way to put off homework as long as possible without actually doing anything constructive. Shortly after Naruto's giant sword-wielding character had been knocked out of the ring, however, Kiba set his controller down, turning to his friend with a devilish smirk.

"All right – now that this whole 'I'm moving' fiasco's over with, it's time for you to fess up. What the hell happened on Friday night?"

"Come on – you already heard about it. Iruka came and started doing the laundry, and he accidentally took Sasuke's clothes, too. That's why we had to borrow yours," Naruto replied casually as he selected a new character.

"Oh, you think that's good enough?" Kiba asked, his eyes narrowing. "Here's what I want to know: _why_ was Sasuke naked in your bed to begin with, huh?"

"He likes to sleep naked! It was raining, and I wasn't just going to kick him out in the rain…" Naruto responded hastily, avoiding his housemate's gaze.

"And I'm sure you didn't join him or anything, did you?" the dog-boy laughed, sitting back on the couch with his usual grin. "You're not fooling anyone, Naruto. I can guarantee you that Sasuke didn't decide to sleep in the buff on his own. _What happened?_"

Naruto returned Kiba's playful smirk with one of his own, shooting the other teen a challenging glare. "You can keep talking all you want, Kiba – you won't get it out of me."

"So that's the thanks I get for helping you out in your time of need, huh? Maybe you would've liked to have lunch with my mom in your underwear," Kiba pouted, crossing his arms in a huff.

"Come on, Kiba. Don't be like that. This is personal stuff! I don't feel comfortable discussing it," the blond returned, scratching his head awkwardly.

"Oh, like that's ever stopped you before. Remember that time you were making out with Sasuke right in front of me? Or when the two of you were getting it on in the shower?"

"We were _not_ getting it on!" Naruto snapped, his face reddening.

Kiba waved his hand dismissively. "Close enough. The point is, you should be able to share these things with me – especially after I decided to lend the two of you a hand. But if you're gonna be all secretive all of a sudden, then I guess I'll just have to live with it."

Naruto knew Kiba was only trying to make him feel guilty. It was so painfully obvious that it was borderline disgusting. Nevertheless, the dog-boy's guilt trip was working. Kiba _had_ helped Naruto and Sauske out the other day – he had a right to know what had happened, right?

Suddenly, Naruto had an idea. His lips curled into a malevolent smirk before he turned to Kiba, saying, "Fine then, Kiba – I'll tell you _exactly _what happened."

A nervous sweat forming on his brow, Kiba backed away from his friend with an uncomfortable smile. "Th-that's all right, Naruto. Just give me the gist of it…'

"No, no – I insist," the blond continued with an almost sadistic pleasure. "See, first we were just going to talk. We went by the park, walked by the river, enjoyed the view – good stuff. Then it started to rain, so we raced back here for shelter. There wasn't much food, but we both wanted dinner, so we shared some ramen. That's when the fun started."

"Naruto, honestly. I get it – sorry I asked."

"See, we started kissing, right? We fell to the floor making out, and then we decided to move things to my room. On the way back, we started taking off each other's clothes – by the time we got to my bed, we were in our underwear. Then we started to make out some more – it was _delicious_…"

Looking visibly uneasy Kiba, shifted uncomfortably in his seat, trying to avoid the looming Naruto's stare. Before he could offer any protest, however, the blond spoke up once again in a low whisper.

"Then, once we had explored each other fully and completely – Sasuke had this fixation with grabbing my ass in particular – we took things a step further. We kicked our underwear off to the side and sat there in all our glory. Then we cuddled close together, and gave each other the release we so desperately needed. I grabbed his–"

Throwing up his hands, Kiba rolled off the couch, shaking his head vigorously. "Whoa, whoa, whoa! Too much information, Naruto! Not cool!"

Sitting back with a satisfied grin, Naruto gazed down at Kiba in triumph. "Are you satisfied, then?"

"Yes! Just… don't say any more! I already have the mental image of the two of you spooning burned into my mind..." Kiba muttered, shuddering in an exaggerated manner.

"Are we even, then?" the blond asked, extending a hand to his friend.

Hesitating, Kiba grasped the proffered hand and rose to his feet with a lighthearted laugh. "Yeah – we're even. I won't pressure you for any more personal details, all right?"

"And I won't scar you with the more intimate aspects of my relationship with Sasuke."

"Agreed."

Shaking hands on the subject, the two housemates sat down once again and picked up their controllers. They resumed their fight, their respective characters wailing on each other with oversized swords and hammers, before Kiba finally glanced over at Naruto, a gleam of curiosity in his eyes.

"So… was all that true, then?"

With a smirk, Naruto kept his eyes focused on the screen, where his character slashed through Kiba's multiple times with his enormous blade. "Oh yeah. That was the PG version, too."

As his character fell to a heap on the ground, Kiba shuddered. "_Way_ too much information…"

A knock at the door put an end to Naruto's victory dance before it could even begin, causing him to drop his controller in surprise. "Oh, that must be Sasuke."

"Sasuke? You called him over, I take it?" Kiba asked as he set his own controller down. "Should I leave? Or are you gonna keep your clothes on this time?"

"He's here to help me unpack, so you're fine," Naruto replied, stepping towards the door. "There was something else I wanted to talk to him about, too. We'll be in my room if you need us."

"Got it," Kiba said with a flippant wave of his hand. He picked up his controller and proceeded to practice against the computer.

With his roommate effectively distracted by his game, Naruto turned his attention to the door, which he threw open in a flash. There, standing in the doorway with his hands in his pockets, was Sasuke, who looked mildly concerned.

"Hey, Naruto," Sasuke greeted as he stepped inside. "You said you needed my help with something?"

"Yeah, actually," Naruto responded, shutting the door behind the Uchiha. "It's not a big deal or anything – I just have a lot to unpack. I was hoping you could lend me a hand for a minute."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow, clearly not thrilled by the proposal. "I'm here to do manual labor?"

"From what I understand, manual labor is more what you guys were doing the other night," Kiba interrupted from the sofa, making a suggestive, stroking motion with his hand.

The Uchiha balked. "He knows?"

"I _might_ have told him about what happened. We did promise to fill him in, after all. It's only fair," Naruto admitted somewhat guiltily.

"Oh, yeah – that reminds me," Sasuke began, digging into his backpack. He soon pulled out a wrinkled set of clothes, which he tossed at Kiba's face with incredible accuracy. "Thanks for the loan."

"Hey! I was winning, you bastard!" Kiba snapped, slapping the clothes off his face. He stared in dismay as his character was repeatedly stabbed in the chest before falling off the edge. "Fucking Raphael…"

"My bad," the Uchiha said exaggeratedly before he and Naruto started down the hall for the blond's bedroom. Once they were out of earshot, he leaned into his boyfriend's ear, saying, "All right, I know you didn't ask me to come all the way over here just to unpack your stuff. What's going on?"

"Nothing! Really, I just wanted to spend some time with you, that's all."

"Tell me the truth, Naruto. I can tell you're hiding something."

_He's good. I guess that's one problem with being boyfriends – you learn to see right through each other's lies…_

"No! I'm serious!" Naruto insisted, waving his hands defensively. "It's just, when I thought I was going to be moving… I don't know why, but it felt like I was going to be saying goodbye forever. Right now, I feel like we dodged the bullet – but who knows when fate will send another obstacle our way? I just want us to appreciate each other's company as much as possible… just in case."

Sasuke considered this for a moment, studying the vulpine boy intently. Finally, he sighed as he pushed open the door to Naruto's room. "You're right. I guess I had a similar fear myself… it would be a waste if we didn't take advantage of this gift."

Stepping into the bedroom, Naruto paused for a moment to look around. It was barren. The shelves were empty – no photos, no random action figures, no knick knacks – and the floor was similarly bare with the exception of several cardboard boxes scattered about the room. Even the bed had been stripped of its sheets, leaving only the mattress lying on the frame. It looked almost ghostly. Only Gama remained out of the box, sitting perched on the nightstand.

_I was really ready to go, wasn't I? Even before I went over to talk to Sasuke, I was convinced that this was my only option. We really are lucky…_

"These are the boxes, then?" Sasuke asked, snapping Naruto out of his reverie.

"Oh, yeah. The ones on top are full of clothes – that's going to be the hard part. The others have some more junk in them. We can save those for later."

Slumping down on the floor, Sasuke grabbed the nearest box and tore open the top, taking a moment to study its contents. Finally, he pulled out a stuffed fox, which he gently tossed to his boyfriend. "I found Paul."

Catching the fox, Naruto grinned and placed it on his nightstand, situating the plushie so it faced his bed. "I forgot I put him in there! I didn't want the little guy to get crushed…"

"You must not have cared about him that much," Sasuke interjected, removing a pair of polka dot boxers from the box. "Looks like the rest of this box is full of undies."

Snatching the boxers from his boyfriend, Naruto blushed slightly. "You say that like it's a bad thing. As I recall, you didn't have much of a problem with them on Friday."

"Of course not – you weren't smothering me with them," the Uchiha replied without missing a beat as he yanked a pair of heart-patterned boxers from the box.

"Well… where would you have put him?" Naruto asked indignantly as he continued to fill his dresser with underwear. "He was the last thing I packed, and I didn't exactly have a lot of options."

"I don't know – I don't have a stuffed fox lying around in my room."

"You know what I mean, Sasuke! If you had a treasured object like Paul, wouldn't you save him for last like I did?" the blond pressed as he opened a new box. "What about your sword?"

"My sword?"

"You know – the katana your parents gave you. That's something you treasure, right? Something you'd save for last?"

Sasuke paused, not only in his speech, but in his actions as well. It was as he he'd frozen completely, having been taken completely aback by his boyfriend's questions. "I don't know. We've never had to move… I suppose I'd save it for last, though."

"Well, there you go! It's the same thing… though Paul is much easier to move than your sword, I suppose…" Naruto began, placing a hand to his chin in thought.

"What about Gama?" Sasuke asked hastily, indicating the metal frog on the nightstand. "Didn't you pack him, too?"

"No. I kept him with me. I wouldn't trust him in some box – he's too precious."

"Too bad you can't really do that with a sword," the Uchiha responded with a weak laugh. "People tend to notice when you're walking around with a katana."

Placing some shirts in another drawer, Naruto chuckled. "You have a point. I guess that would make a difference."

They were silent for a second, save for the occasional rustling as they unloaded the boxes. Naruto shot Sasuke quick, furtive glances, having noticed that something was amiss. Much to his chagrin, though, the Uchiha's eyes were devoid of any emotion – as if he'd zoned out completely.

_Was it something I said? Maybe that sword's a touchy subject… what am I thinking? Of course it's a touchy subject! His parents gave it to him!_

"I'm sorry, Sasuke. I should've known better," Naruto said, breaking the silence as he shoved the drawer shut.

"What are you talking about?" Sasuke asked, looking genuinely confused.

"The sword… I didn't mean to upset you."

Much to Naruto's surprise, the Uchiha laughed. "Upset? Is that what you thought?"

"Yeah," the blond replied, studying his boyfriend curiously. "Was I wrong?"

"No, not at all. I was actually amazed that you even remembered that sword, to be honest…"

"Then… why were you so quiet?"

"Isn't it obvious? I was honored," Sasuke said, blushing somewhat as he pulled out a pair of jeans from a new box. "I mean, you remembered that sword just because I mentioned it that one time, when I haven't even shown it to you…"

_Perfect! Here's my chance! All I have to do is say it just right…_

"We… could change that, you know," the blond replied tentatively. "After all, I've never even seen your room. Whenever we meet up, we always end up coming here."

The raven-haired teen paused, biting his lip nervously. "I don't know about that. I mean… Itachi–"

"Itachi doesn't scare me, Sasuke. He's seen us make out for Pete's sake. I know the two of you don't get along all that well, but we don't have to be around him. It's a big house – we can avoid him, right?"

"I still don't know, Naruto…" Sasuke replied, looking visibly torn.

_All right – time to break out the big guns…_

Turning to his boyfriend with his best sad puppy face, Naruto pleaded, "Come on, Sasuke. Just once, I'd like to see what your room's like. Just once."

After hesitating a few seconds more, weighing the options in his mind, Sasuke sighed. "All right, you win. I'll show you tomorrow, okay?"

"Thanks, Sasuke! This really means a lot to me," Naruto replied, embracing the Uchiha heartily.

"No… problem," Sasuke responded, gasping for breath through the blond's bear hug. "But… could you let go of me?"

"Oh, sure thing," Naruto said, releasing his boyfriend with a sheepish grin. "Sorry about that."

"No problem. Just… try not to kill me in the future."

Nodding, Naruto went back to work, tossing yet another empty box onto the bed as he dug into a fresh package. Even as he focused on the task at hand, though, the blond's mind inevitably wandered back to the thought of what the next day might bring. It seemed childish, but for whatever reason finally seeing Sasuke's room meant the world to Naruto.

_It's gotta be a big step for him… I doubt he ever lets anyone into his room. Maybe Shikamaru… but that's it. Now he's agreed to bring me there – I'm worthy of seeing the most intimate part of his world. He trusts me. Well, don't worry, Sasuke… I won't let you down._

* * *

And, there you have it! How will things go with Kakashi and Iruka's date? Will Naruto like what he finds in Sasuke's room? And what about Gaara's relationship with Lee - how are things developing on that end? Find out in the next installment of _For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him_.


	27. Hiding in My Room

Here it is, folks! Chapter 27! Sorry if it's a bit late - midterms were this past week (got all A's, though, so that worked out). Anyway, I want to thank all of you for reading, as usual, and I especially thank those of you who reviewed. All comments are helpful! Now, on with the chapter!

* * *

27. Hiding in My Room

Gaara sat at the dining room table in his house the following day, staring blankly at the spaghetti before him as he twirled it with his fork. Sitting across from him was his brother, Kankuro, who was busy shoveling the pasta into his mouth, occasionally stopping to gulp down some milk. Upstairs, his sister, Temari, could be heard stumbling about in her room, hurrying to get ready for her big date that evening.

_I don't know why she fell for Shikamaru, anyway. He's too lazy to actually try and win her over, so why is she getting all worked up over another date with him?_

"Is everything okay, Gaara? You haven't touched your dinner, yet."

Glancing to his left, Gaara's eyes met the big, owl-like eyes of Lee, who was giving the redhead a concerned frown. Shooting the mop-topped teen a quick glare, Gaara picked up a forkful of spaghetti and eyed it almost contemptuously. "Is there a problem with that?"

"Yes! You're in the springtime of youth, Gaara! You need all the energy you can get!" Lee replied, enthusiastically grabbing Gaara's fork and shoving it into the redhead's mouth.

His eyes widening in surprise, Gaara quickly grabbed Lee's hand and yanked the fork out of his mouth, swallowing the spaghetti with a cough. Seemingly oblivious to the redhead's suffering, however, Lee simply smiled and patted the teen on the back. "See? Isn't that better?

Gaara made no response, but simply shook his head and took a sip of his own milk, hoping to wash down some of the excess pasta. Of course, Lee was the third member of the dinner table that evening – a fact that had put Gaara on edge. It wasn't that he didn't want Lee there – he'd invited the guy, and he enjoyed his company. The problem was that Gaara knew exactly what this dinner signified. He was serious about Lee – serious enough to introduce him to the rest of his family, at least, and not simply hide the teen up in his room.

Of course, Gaara also knew that he was the only one to fully understand this significance. Lee was more than eager to have dinner with the redhead, but he seemed more excited about the prospect of food than the chance to meet the rest of the Subakuno family. As for Temari and Kankuro, they were both so wrapped up in their own lives that they barely even noticed Lee's presence.

_It's… very anticlimactic. Somehow I was expecting a bigger fuss than this…_

"Do you need me to feed you again?" Lee asked with a playful smirk, grabbing Gaara's fork once again.

Wrenching the fork from the other teen's grasp, Gaara smirked. "No, I've got it. Thanks, though."

"So… Lee, is it?" Kankuro asked, wiping some excess milk from his lips with his black sleeve. "Are you in Gaara's class or something?"

Gaara glanced at Kankuro in surprise. He hadn't actually expected his brother to greet his guest – at least not after having gone through the entire meal in silence until that point. Taking a peek at his brother's plate, though, Gaara quickly put two and two together – once the food was gone, conversation could start.

"Yes, we're in the same grade. And you're Gaara's older brother, correct?" Lee replied with a polite nod.

"The name's Kankuro – and, yeah, Gaara's my little bro. You wouldn't know it by the way he talks to me, though. I'm surprised you can put up with him, to be honest," Kankuro commented, tilting his chair back casually.

"Shut up, Kankuro," Gaara snapped, suddenly questioning his earlier desire for conversation.

"See what I mean? Bossing me around and everything," the elder Subakuno said before leaning forward, covering the side of his mouth covertly. "You wanna know what the funny thing is? I used to listen to him, too."

"Used to? As I recall, I had you doing my laundry this morning, right?"

Kankuro seemed unfazed, but simply flashed the redhead a grin. "As a matter of fact you did. I don't mind helping my little bro out with his chores from time to time, though – I know how tough they can be."

"I don't understand. Were you afraid of Gaara or something?" Lee interrupted, looking quite puzzled by this exchange.

"You could say that, I guess," Kankuro replied, scratching his cheek awkwardly. He glanced briefly at Gaara, almost as if asking for approval.

"It's all right, Kankuro. I was going to tell him eventually, anyway," Gaara said with a sigh of resignation.

_I was hoping to wait a little while… until I at least got to know him better. He'd only be suspicious if I changed the subject now, though…_

"To tell you the truth, the whole thing's kind of our fault – me and Temari, that is," the elder Subakuno began, resting his elbow on the table as he spoke in a somewhat hushed tone. "You see, when we were just kids, our mom was rushed to the hospital. Gaara was on the way, and she was already in labor. I guess there were some complications, though… she didn't make it."

Lee looked down at his plate solemnly. "I'm sorry to hear that. I shouldn't have asked…"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa – that's ancient history now. The important stuff is what happened afterwards," Kankuro responded quickly with a dismissive wave of his hand. "You see, Temari and I weren't exactly pleased with the whole situation. We were close to our mom, and it was tough for us to lose her so young. I guess you could say we resented Gaara a bit for her death… whether we were aware of it or not."

"It wasn't your fault. I would've felt the same way," Gaara said, his voice even, yet somehow consoling in its monotone.

Kankuro shrugged his shoulders. "Either way, it was selfish of us. We started to exclude Gaara from everything – I can remember going off to the park and just leaving him in the house. He'd always be waiting at the window for us to return with that teddy bear in his hands – well, at least at first. After a while he didn't even bother to wait – he knew we wouldn't be coming back for him."

"So… you abandoned him?" Lee asked with horrified tentativeness.

"Oh, no! Of course not!" Kankuro continued with a slight chuckle. "We weren't monsters! We still cared about him – like, we'd make sure he got to sleep and had everything he needed. But it was… empty. We didn't show any affection – it was like we were going through the motions."

"I guess you could say I grew… distant as a result," Gaara added, his eyes closed as he thought of those painful memories. "I stopped talking to others, and would only give short answers when spoken to. Like I said, I don't blame them… not anymore. But I was cold then. I hated the world, and I thought for sure the world hated me right back."

"The real trouble started at school in Suna, though," Kankuro said, shaking his head gravely. "Gaara went off to class, and almost instantly he got into a fight. He didn't start it – he was minding his own business, sitting silently in the corner, when a kid tried to steal his teddy bear. That was all it took to set him off. The other kid only got a bloody nose, but it was enough to get Gaara moved into a different class."

"That's not fair! You were only defending yourself, Gaara! Fighting's a natural part of youth!" Lee exclaimed, outrage by the glaring injustice.

"No, it wasn't like that," Gaara replied, in voice still devoid of emotion. "He may have started it, but I decided to make it a fight. If I'd wanted to, I could've told the teacher and had my bear returned to me just like that. Instead, I wanted to make that kid suffer – to see him shed some blood for his sin."

"He knew it then, too. Our dad scolded him when he found out, but Gaara wasn't about to apologize. He knew exactly what he had done, why he had done it, and that he would've done it again given the opportunity. And believe me, he had plenty of opportunities," Kankuro resumed with a weak smile. "It seemed like every other week, Gaara was getting sent home for fighting. Things started out small – pushing, scratching, tripping – but it grew steadily worse. Kids were complaining of bloody noses, scrapes – a few even wound up with broken bones, and this was still in elementary school!"

"I could still claim it was self-defense, though. Every time I injured someone, it was only after they came after me first. Some just wanted to mess with me, to ruffle my feathers a bit, while others were out for revenge after I hurt one of their friends. No matter how many kept coming, though, I never failed to come out on top," Gaara continued, with a strange combination of pride and shame. "Eventually, I acquired a taste for blood. I craved it – I wanted to see other suffer like I had, to know what it meant to be alone when their friends abandoned them in the heat of battle. And that's when I went a step too far…"

"What happened?" Lee asked, tentatively breaking the ensuing silence.

"It was a few years ago… in middle school," Gaara began, his face solemn as if he were giving a confession. "There was this one classmate that really irked me – Abiru. He had it all – popularity, athletic prowess, a loving family, a future career as a football star – it made me sick. Fate had handed him everything he'd ever need in life on a silver platter, and he didn't appreciate it at all. I wanted nothing more than to make him suffer – to show him what it meant when those gifts were snatched away from you."

"He got to planning after that – well, that's what we found out later," Kankuro added grimly. "See, Temari and I would see Gaara sitting up in his room, writing in his journal, completely unaware of what he was planning. We just assumed he was writing emo poetry or something – we didn't particularly care. It was only afterwards that we realized what was really going on."

"And that was…?" Lee pressed, shifting his gaze from Gaara to Kankuro quickly.

"War," Gaara responded flatly, sealing his eyes shut in apparent disgust. "I couldn't just sit around and wait for Abiru to turn on me – that could've taken years. Instead, I decided to provoke him – pester him just a little bit until he was forced to take action. I did everything in my power to humiliate him little by little. One day I tripped him in the hallway – made it look like an accident. He fell flat on his face and wound up with a bloody nose."

"But that was only the start of it, of course," Kankuro commented with a nod.

"The next day I took things a step further – I 'fell' and spilled my lunch all over Abiru in the cafeteria. He wasn't pleased, but he kept his cool. He was harder to break than I thought," Gaara resumed, glancing briefly at Lee. He couldn't bear to maintain the stare, however, and quickly shifted back to his plate. "So, I decided to take things a step further. After gym class the next day, I stole Abiru's clothes while he was in the shower. Then I pulled the fire alarm – he had nowhere to go, and nothing to cover up with. While he was standing out there in front of the entire class in his birthday suit, I made sure he could see me twirling his underwear on my finger. That was all it took – he'd been pushed to his limits."

"So he fought you, then?" Lee said, jumping to the only logical conclusion.

"That very same day," the redheaded teen confirmed with a nod. "I waited for Abiru in the parking lot after school – after I'd personally returned his clothes, of course. He rushed right over to me and took a swing at – didn't even say a word. Clearly he had never expected to fight anyone better than him. In fact, I'd be surprised if he'd ever been in a fight before that day, because he went down like a sack of bricks.

"Without flinching, I blocked his first punch with my palm and countered with a punch of my own between the eyes. He stumbled back, but before he could recover I was already on him, giving him a swift kick to the chest. That's when he went down – doubled right over and fell face-first on the ground. But…"

"What? What happened?" Lee asked confusedly, looking to Kankuro for an answer as Gaara went deathly silent.

"But Gaara wasn't finished yet," Kankuro said, biting his lip awkwardly.

Gaara nodded slowly in agreement. "I was just so sickened with him – that he could somehow have everyone love him, someone as despicable as him, while I didn't even get a chance to be loved. I was hated from the moment I was born – cursed to live my life alone. So I made sure he felt my agony – it was the only way I could feel alive, depriving another of those gifts I'd never received. While he lay on the ground, weeping openly, I kicked him in the side. Then his arm – I'm almost positive I broke it. Then I moved to the head – stomping on it again and again, digging his face into the gravel…

He couldn't continue. There was no obvious emotion on Gaara's face – the eyes were as dry as they'd ever been, and his lips didn't even quiver. He just went silent and closed his eyes. If he said even one more word, he was certain he'd break down.

"When the teachers finally realized what was going on, they hurried over and pulled Gaara away from Abiru," Kankuro resumed with a heavy sigh. "They called an ambulance and rushed the kid to the hospital, but it was too late…"

Lee stared in horror at Gaara as everything sank in. He finally turned his head to the side in discomfort. "So… he died?"

"I didn't want it to happen!" Gaara exclaimed, his calm demeanor finally cracking for the first time. "I don't know how it happened – it was like I became someone else! There was this monster inside of me struggling to get out, and once he was free, there was no stopping him. One minute I was blocking Abiru's punch, the next… I was standing over his mangled body."

Kankuro and Lee sat in shocked silence, staring at Gaara in utter disbelief. Neither one knew what to think – the sight of Gaara shaking ever so slightly was unsettling for them. Gaara, the heartless demon of Suna, was showing signs of anxiety, inner turmoil and, perhaps most shocking of all, remorse.

In the end, it was Lee who spoke up, turning to Kankuro for clarification. "I don't understand – what happened after that? Did they send you to juvenile hall or anything?"

"Our dad stepped in," Kankuro explained, giving Gaara a chance to collect himself as he trembled in his chair. "He had a lot of influence over in Suna – still does, in fact. When he heard about what happened, he lawyered up and contacted the school, as well as Abiru's family. They determined that Gaara was acting in self-defense, but our dad had to pay them some serious hush money, and Gaara was expelled for fighting. That's why we moved to Konoha in the first place – we didn't have much of a choice in the matter. Everyone in Suna knew what had happened – it was the only way we could escape."

Gaara was silent. Lee was silent. The only one who seemed to be making any noise at all, in fact, was Temari, who was still running around upstairs in her rush to get ready. They remained that way for several minutes, not eating anything or saying anything – everyone was too busy reflecting on the tale of Gaara's past, not knowing what exactly to say.

_He's going to leave, now. Who can blame him? I'm a murderer… nothing but a filthy murderer…_

Before anyone could make a move, however, the front door suddenly burst open, causing Gaara, Lee, and Kankuro to turn their heads in surprise. Standing in the doorway was a man with short, dark brown hair, wearing a neat business suit with a briefcase in his hand. He set the briefcase down on the floor and slammed the door shut before taking a seat at the table, barely acknowledging anyone else's existence.

"H-hi, Dad," Kankuro said, breaking the silence with a feeble smile. "You're back early?"

"Yeah, what of it?" he said, removing the lid on the pot in the middle of the table. "What do we got here? Spaghetti again? Goddammit… when are you kids going to learn to make some actual food for a change?"

"We were in a bit of a rush today. Temari has plans for the evening, and Gaara had a guest, so we just cooked something up real quick," Kankuro explained, indicating Lee with a nod of his head.

Mr. Subakuno briefly glared at Lee and frowned. "Who the hell are you?"

"Rock Lee, sir! I'm in Gaara's class," Lee replied with an enthusiastic salute.

"Whoa, whoa – I didn't ask for your life story, kid. Geez," the man replied before shoving a forkful of spaghetti into his mouth. "Kankuro! Go heat this up for me, will ya? It's colder than a witch's teat."

Kankuro nodded as his father shoved the plate towards him in disgust before hurrying off into the kitchen. Meanwhile, Mr. Subakuno turned towards Lee and Gaara with feigned interest. "So, Gaara, is Lee here a friend of yours?"

"You could say that," Gaara replied distantly as he rose from his seat. A careful eye could see he was still shaken, though he managed to mask it adequately. "We were just going to study upstairs. Come on, Lee."

"Yeah, you do that. Get some good grades, make something of yourself."

As Mr. Subakuno was speaking, a sudden pounding in the distance caught his and Gaara's attention. Glancing towards the entrance, they realized it was someone knocking at the door.

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" Temari exclaimed as she rushed down the stairs. Before she could open the door, however, Mr. Subakuno had risen from his chair, his eyes wide with rage.

"Where the hell do you think you're going dressed like that?" he roared, causing Temari to freeze in her tracks.

"Oh… Daddy, you're home early. What a lovely surprise," she replied with a nervous laugh. "I have a date tonight…"

"Not until you put some clothes on, you don't!" he snapped, staring at his daughter in what can only be described as disgust.

It wasn't exactly unjustified. Temari was clearly dressed to impress: black miniskirt, fishnet stockings, black heels, a brief black shirt revealing her bare midriff – it was enough to make even the most liberal-minded father think twice. Temari was not one to go down without a fight, however, and instead threw open the door with a smirk.

"Daddy, meet Shikamaru," she said, as she revealed the lazy genius standing in the doorway. "He's in Gaara's class, isn't that right?"

"Don't get me involved in this…" Gaara muttered while giving Shikamaru a quick nod of acknowledgement.

"Umm… am I interrupting something?" Shikamaru asked, looking about the room in confusion. "I can come back later…"

"No, no – I was just telling Daddy here all about you, Shika," Temari replied, embracing her date tightly, her breasts pressing up against his face. Shikamaru found himself blushing, while Mr. Subakuno turned a different shade of red.

"Temari… how long have you been hiding this boy from me?"

"I haven't been hiding anything, Daddy. You'd know all about him if you were ever home," Temari said, shooting her father a bitter glare. "I promise I'll be home by ten, okay? There's nothing to worry about."

Mr. Subakuno returned his daughter's glare, until they were both engaged in a sort of family staring contest. Finally, he seemed to relent, and instead set his sights on a very nervous Shikamaru. "All right, now you listen to me – if my daughter is so much as _one_ minute late, I will castrate you with a rusty fork. Got it?"

"Y-yes, sir," Shikamaru gulped, before whispering to himself, "So that's where Gaara gets it…"

"Thanks, Daddy! I knew you'd understand," Temari replied in an overly cheerful manner as she escorted the petrified Shikamaru out of the house to safety, leaving Gaara and Lee alone once again with Mr. Subakuno.

The man turned to the two teens, still clearly aggravated, and snapped, "Well? What're you staring at? Didn't you two have studying to do or something?"

"Right, what _was_ I thinking? Let's go, Lee."

With that, Gaara led Lee up to his bedroom, where he promptly sealed the door shut and collapsed. It had been too much – holding in his emotions while his father was present, and now the redhead's tension got some much-needed release. Sitting on his small, green rug amid a sea of beige carpeting, Gaara found himself crying – something that was frightening in itself. Of course, the circumstances behind those tears were of a different horror altogether.

"Gaara? What's the matter with you?" Lee asked, hovering over the redhead as he lay on the floor, sobbing uncontrollably.

"Like you don't know," Gaara responded bitterly, leaning his head against his bookcase. "I'm a murderer! No matter what I do with my life, I'll never be able to escape that fact."

"I'm sorry, Gaara. You shouldn't have told me about it if you weren't ready yet," Lee said consolingly as he took a seat beside his friend. "I thought that happened a long time ago… have you never even talked about it before."

Gaara shook his head. "I never needed to. I didn't regret it at the time… that's why I kept fighting, even here in Konoha. There was no remorse – he was just… a casualty. I thought he had it coming…"

"I don't think so," Lee replied, tentatively grasping the redhead's hand. "You might've _convinced_ yourself that was the case, but I think you regretted it. Otherwise you wouldn't be feeling all torn up right now."

"What do you know?" Gaara snapped, only to be slapped in the face with realization. "Wait… you mean, you don't think I'm… a monster?"

"Of course not! I _like_ you, Gaara – I'll admit I'm disappointed in you, but I don't think you're a monster," Lee replied, grabbing Gaara's head so he could stare the other teen in the face. "You might've been a cold, ruthless kid before, but that's not the Gaara I know. You've changed – everyone can see it! Your brother isn't afraid of you anymore, that's for sure, and you've opened up to our group – especially me and Naruto. Whatever happened with Abiru is in the past. I'm willing to get past it if you are."

_He's lying… I can tell he's disturbed by this. Why wouldn't he be?_

"You don't have to lie to me, Lee. I know how you must feel. I mean… I _killed_ him! If I hadn't been so determined to make him suffer, Abiru would still be here today. Can't you see that?" Gaara stammered, before averting his gaze in self-loathing.

Lee looked guilty, knowing he'd been caught. "Well… it's true. It's hard to believe that someone actually died because of something you did, but that doesn't mean you're a monster, Gaara! Remember, you said you lost control. It was like someone else took over for the fight, and you could only sit back and watch – that wasn't _you_ who killed Abiru. Not the Gaara I know, at least."

"Right, it was just the bloodthirsty Gaara that was waiting to break free. It was still me, no matter how you say it…"

"No! It's not that simple, Gaara! It wasn't your fault that you hated the world – it was the result of all that suffering you experienced, all that loneliness," Lee explained before crossing his arms in frustration. "Maybe I'm not explaining this right… you couldn't help it that you hated Abiru. Like you said, you never made a conscious decision to kill him – it just happened."

"Like that's an excuse… whether I was aware of it or not, I _did_ kill him, Lee. You can't deny that."

"Yes – but that doesn't mean you have to mope about it! You're not the same person you were back then. You've changed, and now you have the chance to repent!"

Gaara's expression softened somewhat. "While I'm in 'the springtime of my youth?'"

"Exactly!" Lee replied, positively beaming with enthusiasm. "You can't change the past, Gaara – no matter how much you beat yourself up about it, Abiru won't come back."

"So you're saying I should just move on? Forget about all the terrible things I've done?" the redhead snarled, burying his head in his hands.

"No, no! Nothing like that – then you _would_ be a monster. What's important is that you learn from the past, and use that knowledge to move forward. As Gai-sensei says, 'Life is full of ups and downs, but unless you learn how to overcome those obstacles of the past, you'll never win the race.'"

_He has a saying for everything, doesn't he?_

"I'm nothing but trouble, Lee. No one would miss me one bit if I just disappeared one day," Gaara concluded with a sigh. No sooner had the words left his lips, however, than the redhead's shoulders were seized by a very determined Lee, who stared the other teen in the eyes.

"That's not true, and you know it!"

"Please. Give me one example," Gaara challenged, meeting Lee's gaze head-on.

"What about your family?"

"They'd get over it. Did you forget? They didn't want me in the first place."

"And Naruto?"

"He has Sasuke – he'd survive. Face it, Lee, nobody would miss me…"

"I would."

That was enough to jar Gaara out of his state of self-pity. He stared at Lee in surprise, not knowing what exactly to say. "What do you mean? I've only really known you for few weeks…"

"So what? I know you're important to me – isn't that enough?"

Gaara considered this for a moment. _Was_ it enough? Sure, their little make out session the week before had been nice – it certainly had gotten Gaara's mind off Naruto – but was that enough of a reason to try to move on? He looked to the mop-topped teen for an answer. "Do you really think I can get past this?"

"Of course you can! You just need to trust us to help you through it. Me, Naruto, your family – we all care about you, Gaara. I'm not saying it'll happen right away – it'll take some hard work to come to accept that part of your past – but if you're feeling down, we're always ready to lend a hand."

"That sounds so corny," Gaara said eventually with a weak, though genuine chuckle.

"C-corny? But that's one of Gai-sensei's favorite –"

Lee's protest was abruptly interrupted by Gaara, who silenced the teen with his lips. It was just a brief peck – long enough to distract Lee while Gaara stared at him with a smirk. "Please don't mention Gai again."

"Hey, that's not fair! You can't just leave me like that…"

"Oh, I wasn't finished yet," Gaara replied before leaning back to resume their kiss.

Before long, Gaara had Lee pinned to the bed and was fervently exploring every inch of the mop-topped teen's chest with his mouth. With every new sensation that went rippling through his body, Lee blushed profusely, which caused Gaara to chuckle in turn.

_Maybe he's right – maybe all I need is someone to share my emotions with. Either that or someone to distract me with a different kind of sadism. Either way… I think maybe, just maybe, this is going to work out…_

***

Sasuke walked home that Tuesday afternoon feeling anxious. Beside him was Naruto, who was clearly trying to contain his enthusiasm, but failing miserably. Though Sasuke pretended not to notice, he could tell that Naruto was looking forward to what they had planned for that afternoon. Unfortunately, the Uchiha could not say the same.

He wasn't sure why he was making such a big deal of it. All Naruto wanted was to see his room – was that so unreasonable? He'd seen Naruto's room more than enough times – heck, they'd had their share of intimate moments on his bed – so what was the difference in switching roles for a change?

_Because it's _my_ room of course…_

It sounded incredibly selfish, not to mention stupid, but it was the truth. Something about showing that most personal space to Naruto made Sasuke nervous. It wasn't so much that he was afraid of what Naruto would think – he knew by now that Naruto would love his room even if it was a refrigerator box on the street. No, the problem was that it would be revealing that last secret of Sasuke's, that one aspect of his life that he had closed off to the rest of the world long ago.

_Does he know what this means to me? Probably – why else would he be so excited about seeing it? He's always so insightful right when I least expect him to be…_

"Are you sure you're okay with this?" Naruto asked as they passed by the park, almost as if he had read the Uchiha's thoughts. "I mean, we're right by my apartment. We can just go there if you'd prefer…"

Sasuke smiled inwardly; it was like Naruto was trying to prove his point – always so surprisingly insightful. "No, it's fine. You're right – it's only fair that you see it."

Clearly this was exactly what Naruto wanted to hear, as he positively beamed. "Great! I'll race you to your house, then!"

With that, Naruto broke into a run, leaving a stunned Sasuke in his wake. "Geez… what's the rush?"

Shaking his head, Sasuke chased after the blond, catching up with him just outside Sasuke's neighborhood. There they continued at a walk, somewhat winded by the race, and took a moment to catch their breath outside the Uchiha mansion.

"Well? Are you gonna let me in?" Naruto asked with an exhausted grin.

"So impatient today, I swear…" Sasuke muttered before pushing open the door. He turned to the blond and made a dramatically formal bow. "After you, good sir."

Naruto bowed in kind and stepped inside, where he removed his shoes by the door. Once Sasuke had shut the door behind them, they stood in awkward silence for a moment, each waiting for the other to make a move. Finally, Naruto cleared his throat and looked around the foyer. "So… do I get the grand tour or what?"

Feeling rather foolish, Sasuke murmured, "Oh, right… yeah, follow me."

Walking into the living room to the right, Sasuke paused and extended a hand, as if revealing a vast landscape. "_This_ is the living room. You may remember it from Sunday, when we were trying to figure out a way for you to stay in Konoha. That crack in the wall is where I threw the phone after you left."

"It's nice – well, except for the crack," Naruto replied. He strolled through the room, taking in all the furniture and pictures on the wall, pausing by what appeared to be a family portrait. "Are these your parents?"

"Yeah – they're in the back, Itachi and I are in the front," Sasuke explained before pointing to a fifth figure standing slightly to the side. "That's our cousin Obito."

"Obito? You've never mentioned him before…"

"He died – not long before my parents did."

Naruto gulped. "I see."

"Moving on," Sasuke said after a moment of awkward silence, leading Naruto around the corner into the kitchen. It was a rather large area, with a red-tiled floor and numerous, pristine white appliances. A bit further down, beyond a small partition, was the dining room table, complete with an elaborate candelabrum at its center. "This is the kitchen. Feel free to help yourself to a drink if you want. Our chef usually prepares dinner here around 6:00 if you want to stay – I think he's making a roast tonight."

"Sounds good…" Naruto replied, eyeing the numerous utensils on the wall in awe. "Do you know what half of these are?"

"No – and I don't think the chef does, either. But we have them just in case," Sasuke replied, pulling what appeared to be a Swiss-army butcher knife off the wall. "Like this thing – I'm pretty sure this thing has never been opened."

Setting the bizarre tool back on the wall, Sasuke led Naruto a bit further down to the sunroom. It was an open area with a fine, wood floor, surrounded by windows on the sides, with larger windows providing light from above. The furniture – mostly chairs and loveseats – were pure white, and they were the only decoration in the room save for a few ferns lined up along the far wall. "This is the sun room – I don't think either of us have actually used this room in the past few years. Only the maids like to sit here and chat on their breaks, really."

"What about out there?" Naruto asked, pointing to a sliding door that led outside. "Do you ever use that?"

"Of course – that's the pool deck."

Naruto's eyes widen with envy. "You have a pool?"

"And a hot tub, though we use that more in the winter. I'll show you that some other time, though," Sasuke said, beckoning Naruto with his finger. "I still have to show you around upstairs.

They walked in silence back to the foyer, where they climbed the polished, oak staircase up to the upper corridor. There, Sasuke led Naruto down the hall, past the banister, to an expansive bedroom with a king-sized bed and crimson sheets. They paused only briefly in the doorway while Sasuke introduced the room, "This is Itachi's bedroom – used to be my parents'. I think that's enough of that, though."

With that, Sasuke grabbed Naruto's arm and practically dragged him back to the opposite end of the hallway, where he threw open another door. It led to yet another bedroom – somewhat smaller than the last, but still easily the size of Naruto's living room. It looked as if it hadn't been touched in years: the bed was made, its sheets lying perfectly flat. The walls were covered with different charts and graphs, depicting varying financial figures, while the nearby dressers were covered with notebooks arranged in tidy little rows. "And this used to be Itachi's bedroom. We still clean it, but it's basically a guest bedroom now."

"So this is where I would've slept?"

"Yes – if you were living here, this would be your room. Sorry to say."

"What's with all the graphs?" Naruto asked, eyeing one chart confusedly. "Are these recent?"

"No, Itachi hung them up when he was our age. He was studying to take over the company. Sad, isn't it?"

"A little bit, yeah," Naruto concluded with a nod before backing out of the room. "So… are there any games or anything? I thought you'd have a billiard room or something."

"That's in the other wing – opposite side of the pool, you know. We have the gym over there, and the billiard room. Our home theater, our game room – all in that entertainment wing, basically," Sasuke replied as they left the bedroom.

"And when were you planning on showing me that, huh?" Naruto asked, placing his hands on his hips.

"I thought we'd save that for another day – you wanted to see this anyway," the Uchiha said, placing his hand on a doorknob about halfway down the corridor.

_All right – here goes nothing…_

Taking a deep breath, Sasuke turned the knob and pushed open the door, stepping to the side so his boyfriend could enter first. Once Naruto was inside, Sasuke followed after, sealing the door shut behind him.

Naruto appeared mesmerized, surveying the room in great detail as he slowly strolled around the perimeter. "It's… amazing!"

Sasuke sighed – that was about the reaction he expected. Still, he decided not to say anything, but instead watched as Naruto explored the new space. The blond seemed particularly interested in the royal blue carpet, which he dug his feet into as he walked, feeling the luxurious, soft material run between his toes. He also seemed fixated with certain posters on the wall – mostly movie posters, like _The Silence of the Lambs_, with a few bands mixed in. When Naruto came to the shattered clock on the floor, which Sasuke had neglected to clean up in the past few days, he simply tiptoed over it, apparently unfazed by the destruction.

"Oh! Is that your sword?" Naruto asked, rushing to the katana mounted above the Uchiha's dresser.

"That's the one. You want to see it?"

"No, that's fine – I'd rather see your other sword later, anyway," the blond responded with a devilish grin.

_Leave it to him to make dirty puns at a time like this…_

"Oh! What have we here?" Naruto asked suddenly, rushing to the far corner of the room. There was a large stereo system, wedged between several columns of CDs. "This thing's huge!"

"Surround sound, too," Sasuke commented, indicating the various speakers mounted on the wall, pointing down at his bed.

"Let's see – you like Simon and Garfunkel?" the blond asked, shooting his boyfriend a curious glance. "I never would've pictured you as the type…"

"And I wouldn't have expected you to even know who they are," Sasuke replied with equal surprise.

"Hey, I like to think I have a well-rounded knowledge of music," Naruto said with a defensive humph. "What's your favorite song by them?"

"What kind of question is that? It's like asking me to pick a favorite child," the Uchiha sighed before furrowing his brow in thought. "I mean, there's _Mrs. Robinson_, _Bridge Over Troubled Water_…"

"But if you had to pick just one, what would it be?"

Sasuke considered this for a second. It wasn't long, however, before he realized there was only one possible answer. "_For Emily, Whenever I May Find Her._"

"Really? I don't think I've ever heard that one," Naruto said, scratching his head sheepishly.

"It's not their most famous song, I'll admit…"

"Well, let's listen to it!" the vulpine boy interrupted excitedly before placing the CD into the stereo.

Before Sasuke could offer any form of protest, the music began drifting from the speakers, filling the room with the song's soothing melody. Almost immediately, the Uchiha felt his nerves calming, and he sat down on his bed, losing himself in the song.

_What a dream I had_

_Pressed in organdy_

_Clothed in crinoline_

_Of smoky burgundy_

_Softer than the rain_

As these words flowed into the room, Naruto took a seat beside Sasuke, resting his head on the other teen's shoulders. Neither one said a word, but instead laid back on the bed as the song continued.

_I wandered empty streets down_

_Past the shop displays_

_I heard cathedral bells_

_Dripping down the alleyways_

_As I walked on_

Lying on the bedspread, Naruto and Sasuke stared at each other, each teen losing himself in the other's eyes as the song escalated.

_And when you ran to me, your_

_Cheeks flushed with the night_

_We walked on frosted fields_

_Of juniper and lamplight_

_I held your hand_

Naruto seemed to be following along with the song, clasping Sasuke's hand before pulling his boyfriend into an embrace. Sasuke felt goosebumps rise on his arms, and his eyes grew a bit misty as the song moved into its final verse.

_And when I awoke_

_And felt you warm and near_

_I kissed your honey hair_

_With my grateful tears_

_Oh, I love you, girl_

_Oh, I love you_

Gently tilting Naruto's head forward, Sasuke leaned in and softly kissed the teen's golden locks. As he pulled back, Sasuke found he had, indeed, left a faint trace of his tears in those strands of sunshine, a fact that made him chuckle slightly.

"Something wrong?" Naruto asked, glancing up in concern.

"Nothing at all," Sasuke replied with a quick peck to the blond's lips.

With that, Sasuke pulled Naruto back into a tight embrace, and together they sat lay on the bed in silence while _The Sound of Silence_ played overhead. Though Sasuke didn't say what was passing through his mind the whole time they remained in each other's arms, he was certain the message was clear.

_Oh, I love you…_

_---_

Well, there you have it! Hope you enjoyed it! Now, then, what's going to happen next? Will Iruka and Kakashi have their date (hint: yes, they will). So, you have that to look forward to. Anyway, I'll have that up as soon as possible, and I look forward to hearing from you - remember, review!


	28. She Once Was a True Love of Mine

Wow! This chapter ended up being much longer than I intended. I apologize for the delay - plot bunnies got away with me, don't you know. Well, in any case, I hope you enjoy it - 28 chapters already! I can't believe it. Anyway, as usual, thanks for reading, and especially thanks to those who reviewed. All comments are helpful! Now, on with the chapter!

* * *

28. She Once Was a True Love of Mine

"He finally showed you his place, huh?" Kiba asked between heavy breaths.

Naruto nodded. Gai had decided it was a beautiful Wednesday to go out on the track once again, even though it was essentially a downpour. Not that Naruto particularly cared – he could just take his mind off the rain and run. Same went with Kiba, who was more than used to Gai's extreme training methods after a month or so on the track team. It was Sasuke who was not amused, and was trailing behind the others, sulking.

Again, Naruto opted to make the most of this situation, and was currently filling in Kiba on his experience at the Uchiha mansion, and his audience was eager to hear the juicy details.

"Well? Are you gonna tell me about it or not?" Kiba asked, wiping some of the rain from his face as they ran. "Is it huge?"

"Enormous," Naruto replied, spreading his arms for emphasis. "I didn't think it was that big at first – he only showed me a few rooms, you know – seemed like a regular house. Then he told me that there was a whole other wing he hadn't shown me!"

"So, you've only seen half of it?" Kiba pressed, looking somewhat disappointed.

"For now, at least. I only asked to see his room, after all."

"And how was that? Let me guess… black, Marilyn Manson posters…"

"I've told you before, he's not emo," Naruto replied with a slight glare. "Although it wasn't exactly the brightest room I've ever seen, I'll admit."

"So it _was_ black," the dog-boy said with a triumphant smirk.

"More like dark-blue. To tell you the truth, I'd be more creeped out if I'd walked in and everything was white."

"Agreed," Kiba concurred with a shudder. "So… come on. There has to be something else. Get with the good stuff!"

"Well, he did have some posters. Lots of movies – _Silence of the Lambs_, _The Godfather_ – some bands. The Beatles were there, definitely."

"That sounds… strangely normal."

"Like I said, he's a pretty normal guy. He's just been through a lot… likes to keep to himself, you know?" Naruto continued, blinking as a particularly large drop fell on his face. "He definitely likes his music, though – no, not Marilyn Manson. We cozied up to Simon and Garfunkel – it was nice."

"And that's it?" Kiba asked with a skeptical glance. "No extended spooning or anything?"

"Believe it or not, we're not just hormonal sex fiends, Kiba," Naruto replied in a monotone.

"True, but you can't deny that the two of you have been moving fast. I mean, it's only October, so you've only really known each other for a few weeks but you're acting like you've been together for months."

Naruto hadn't thought of this. Were he and Sasuke moving too fast? They hadn't done a lot – it wasn't like they were having sex or anything, but what if Kiba was right? Sasuke wasn't used to connections like this – what if he decided to drop the whole thing, just because it was too sudden? "You think we've been going too fast?"

"Well… not necessarily. Everyone goes at their own pace, right? Some people have sex on the first date; others wait until their married. Most people fall somewhere in-between," Kiba offered with a shrug. "I'm not saying you should slow down or anything, but you should think about the big picture. Right now, whenever you and Sasuke get together, you have a tendency to hide in your room and make out."

"We do no– "

"Naruto, I'm not an idiot. I know exactly why you go in there immediately and lock the door. It's not like I can't hear the two of you rolling around or anything," Kiba interrupted, rolling his eyes dramatically.

"Are we really that obvious?" Naruto asked with a guilty grin.

"Yes, you are. But that's fine – I helped push you into this relationship, after all. Anyway, my point is that you and Sasuke need to start going out and doing things together. See a movie or something – I know your relationship with him isn't based only on sex, but I think it would be good for you two to have some normal outings."

"So… you think we should go out on dates?" Naruto asked, his brow furrowed in confusion.

"Well, if you want to be blunt about it, yes," the dog-boy replied with a sigh. "It'll be good for Sasuke, especially. I know you have no problem being around your friends in public, but Sasuke hasn't seen us outside of school since that party a few weeks ago."

"But you said _not_ to push him!" Naruto groaned in exasperation.

"No, I said not to move too fast. You _have _to push him," Kiba corrected with a wave of his finger. "If he can get used to making connections with people again, I think it'll be easier for the two of you to move forward with your relationship."

_Damn… he's got a good point…_

"What do you think we should do, then?" the blond asked, scratching his cheek sheepishly.

"Well, I'd start by just trying to hang out with him after school. Try not to eat his face within the first five minutes, or something," Kiba said with a smirk. "I know it's asking a lot, but I think you can do it."

"I'll see what I can do," Naruto concluded, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

It was on that note that Kiba and Naruto finished their final lap on the track, at which point Gai stepped forward and gave them both a hearty smack on the back. "Great work, you two. Go on and hit the showers – you've earned it."

The two housemates nodded and started back towards the school, their breathing heavy from their extended run. Once they were inside, they headed for the locker rooms, where they wasted no time in stripping out of their soaked clothes.

"I don't think these'll ever dry," Naruto muttered as he removed his blue boxers, which stuck to his legs as he struggled to peel them off.

"Now you know how I feel," Kiba replied, tossing his own damp uniform into his locker with a sigh. "He makes us do that at every practice, rain or shine.

"The man's insane."

"Believe me, I know," the dog-boy said, slipping off his briefs before slamming his locker shut. After throwing a towel over his shoulder, he and the blond headed to the showers, where they tried to warm up under a stream of hot water.

As the duo showered off, they talked briefly about various subjects – recent movies, upcoming game releases, homework assignments – all while dancing around the subject of Sasuke. After a few minutes, Kiba shut off his own shower and headed out, wrapping his towel around his waist as he headed for his locker. This left Naruto alone to his thoughts, where his mind inevitably drifted back to his boyfriend.

_Am I really focusing too much on the physical part of our relationship? I mean… I guess we do tend to make out a lot… but it's not like that's all we do. We talk, right? Like that time we went to the park… where we made out._ _Hmm… he may have a point. What else should we do, though? I don't even know what Sasuke likes to do in his spare time…_

And that was the problem: Naruto didn't know enough about Sasuke yet. He knew about his past, his emotions, and that part of who he was, but the everyday aspects of the Uchiha's life eluded him. It wasn't like Sasuke just sat around all day waiting for Naruto to rescue him from his boredom – there had to be something he liked to do.

_That must be what Kiba meant – I have to start doing other things with Sasuke, so I can figure out what he likes and dislikes. But where do I start?_

"Still with us, Naruto?"

Looking up in surprise, the hot water beating down on his head, Naruto found a familiar, raven-haired teen standing a few feet in front of him, a slight smirk crossing his lips. "Sasuke? Oh, geez! What time is it?"

"Class ended a few minutes ago. Lunch just started," Sasuke explained, turning on the showerhead beside the blond. He let the steaming water rush through his hair for a moment, running his hands through the black locks before turning back towards his boyfriend. "Gai made me run a few extra laps, since I wasn't showing enough 'hustle.' He drives me crazy sometimes…"

"I know what you mean. I just hope my stuff dries by tomorrow," Naruto added, grabbing a bar of soap from the dish to his right.

It was only then that it occurred to Naruto – he and Sasuke were sharing a shower in the middle of school. Meaning they were both completely naked. Suddenly, the blond found himself struggling not to stare down at the Uchiha's crotch. This was very strange in and of itself, since Naruto already had more than enough experience with that particular area. Somehow the school setting made the idea of sex taboo, however, which made it all the more enticing in turn.

_Just don't stare, just don't stare. Think of baseball. Cold showers. Kittens going through a wood chipper._

"Are you sure this is okay? I mean… you and me… together? In here?" Naruto asked, glancing out at the empty locker room nervously.

"Everyone else is gone – we'll be fine," Sasuke replied, lathering up as he spoke. "Besides, I wasn't just going to wait all day for you to snap out of your daydream."

"Was I really that out of it?" Naruto said, scratching his head sheepishly.

"Oh yeah – your eyes were glazed over and everything," the Uchiha answered with a chuckle, turning to face his boyfriend. "Something on your mind?"

"Right now? Yes," the blond said before briefly peeking down at his boyfriend's package. "I'm trying to keep everything under control, if you catch my drift."

"_Please_, I gave that up a while ago," Sasuke said simply, shutting off his own showerhead as he stepped towards Naruto. "It's like I said – we're all alone."

Naruto gulped, taking a step back so he and Sasuke could share the same showerhead. "Where's this coming from all of a sudden?"

"Well, I know you're hiding something from me, and I know you're not going to me without some motivation," the Uchiha continued, approaching Naruto as he spoke. "So let's just say I'm using a little trick I picked up from you to help you along."

_Damn! He learns fast…_

Naruto found himself backed up against the wall, with nowhere to run and nowhere to hide. Sasuke placed a hand on the wall to either side of Naruto's head, looming over his boyfriend with a devilish smirk on his face. He leaned in, and planted a kiss on the blond, the hot water rushing over both of them. Naruto found his resistance melting away as Sasuke then moved one of his hands down to his boyfriend's hip. It was only when that hand moved a bit further south, however, and gently brushed against the Naruto's crotch that his will collapsed. The blond gasped and pushed the Uchiha away, his face a shade of red.

"All right, all right! Geez," Naruto said, shutting off the shower with one quick motion. "What if someone had seen us? We're in school, for crying out loud!"

"That was a risk I was willing to take. You were the one shouting about us in the hallway last week, so consider this payback. Besides," Sasuke began, glancing down at his boyfriend's crotch, "you know you liked it."

As they exited the showers, Naruto grabbed a towel and hurriedly covered his minor erection, trying to ignore the Uchiha's statement. "And I suppose you were just doing it for kicks, then? No ulterior motive whatsoever?"

"Who me?" Sasuke asked in feigned innocence as he opened his locker. He proceeded to dry off, facing Naruto as he wiped down his back. "Now, you promised – what's going on?"

"Well… it's about us," Naruto began, tossing his damp towel into the nearby bin.

"Us? What's that supposed to mean?" the Uchiha asked, his eyes narrowing.

"No, no! It's nothing bad," the blond said quickly, waving his hands defensively. "It's just… well, I was thinking we should do something… you know… together."

"Could you be a bit more specific?" Sasuke said as he pulled up his navy boxers.

"Yeah, I know – I'm not explaining this very well," Naruto replied, shaking his head in frustration. "It's just… whenever we get together, we always go to my bedroom or something and just make out."

"Is there something wrong with us making out? Do I have bad breath–?"

"I told you already, it's nothing like that!" Naruto interrupted, examining his own soaked underwear briefly before tossing them back in the locker. "You know I enjoy it just as much as you do – hell, why do you think I reacted the way I did in the shower just now?"

Sasuke considered this for a moment as he stepped into his khaki shorts. "I guess you have a point."

The blond sighed, satisfied that he was finally making sense. He pulled on his own orange shorts, grimacing at the thought of going commando. "My point is, I want to do other things with you. Maybe go to a movie… or the zoo. I don't know."

"The zoo?" Sasuke asked, raising an eyebrow skeptically.

"Well… you know what I mean," Naruto said in mild exasperation. As he pulled on his shirt, he found himself chuckling. "I guess it's working backwards, huh? First you make out and jerk each other off, then you go to the next level and go on a date."

"We've never been the most conventional couple," Sasuke replied, pulling on his own shirt. Once the duo had their socks and shoes on, they shut their respective lockers and stood up, giving each other a slight smile. "Look, I'm not sure how I feel about the zoo, exactly, but I wouldn't mind doing something else every once and a while. Give my lips a chance to rest."

"That's great! I don't really want to do anything big at first, either – maybe we can just meet up at one of our houses and… well, not make out. At least not right away."

"Sounds fine by me. In fact, why don't we go to my house today?" the Uchiha offered as they started out the door. "I never did finish giving you the tour, after all."

With that, the duo stepped into the hallway, where they were almost immediately greeted by a blur of pink, followed by a banshee screech. "_Sasuke!_"

"Hi, Sakura," Sasuke groaned, wincing at the sound of the girl's grating voice. "What's going on? Hasn't lunch started already?"

"Sure it has, but I thought I'd stay and see if you wanted to sit with me today," Sakura responded in an almost nauseatingly sweet voice. "I don't mind waiting if it's for you, after all."

"That's nice, Sakura, and I appreciate the offer, but I already have plans," the Uchiha said in as calm a voice as he could manage under the circumstances. "Sorry to have kept you waiting."

"Oh, it's no problem. I had plenty to keep myself entertained," the girl replied as the trio walked towards the cafeteria.

"Have a book to read or something?" Sasuke asked, in an attempt to be civil.

"Not exactly," Sakura said enigmatically, running a hand through her pink locks. "You know, it's amazing what you can hear from outside there. Everything just echoes on the inside."

Naruto felt a brief twinge of panic run down his spine. He tried to keep his cool, though, and pretended to be distracted by a bulletin board as the passed by. A furtive glance at Sasuke told the blond that he, too, was struggling to keep everything under control. Knowing that silence would only confirm her suspicions, though, the Uchiha decided to keep the conversation going.

"Is that so? I suppose that would explain why we can always hear Gai from all the way down the hall – good acoustics, I guess," the raven-haired teen replied with a nervous scratch of his cheek.

"You bet – some of the girls like to sit outside there, just so they can eavesdrop on your conversations. I always thought they were exaggerating, but I guess I was wrong," Sakura continued, her green eyes narrowing somewhat dangerously. "I hope you don't mind if I overheard you in there. It was completely accidental, I assure you."

"You'll have to forgive me if I feel like my trust has been betrayed a bit, Sakura," Sasuke responded, shooting the girl a quick glare.

"Then you really won't like what I'm about to tell you," Sakura resumed with false guilt. "You see, I was a little bit curious about what was taking so long, so… I may have peeked inside."

_That bitch! I'll kill her! So help me I'll kill her!_

"What the hell's the matter with y–"

Sasuke immediately cupped a hand over Naruto's mouth, muffling his rant. "I believe what Naruto means to say is that you crossed the line with that one. I believe it'll come as no surprise to you that I'm going to have to end what little remained of our friendship right here and now."

"And I'm sure it'll come as no surprise to _you_ that I'll tell everyone in the school about what I saw if you don't come and sit with me today," Sakura said, her cheery smile contrasting sharply with the venom in her voice. "Do I make myself clear, Sasuke? Naruto?"

Naruto gritted his teeth. He couldn't tell how much Sakura knew, if anything. For all he knew, she was only suspicious, but now she had them in a trap. If they just went along with what she said, it would only confirm what had previously been a guess. If they made too much of a fuss over it, she'd spread whatever rumor she had planned, and then their secret would be out.

"Well, Naruto – we can't just let her spread rumors about…umm… your _endowment_, can we?" the Uchiha said finally, once again maintaining his mask of good humor. "Don't worry, about it – I'll bite the bullet on this one. You owe me, though."

"I _knew_ you'd see it my way," Sakura said, grabbing Sasuke by the arm before dragging him into the cafeteria. "Come along, now! I want to show you off in front of the fanclub…"

As Naruto watched Sasuke and Sakura disappear into the lunchroom, he felt his hands curl into fists as he bit his lip. He was not happy about this latest turn of events – not one bit. For the moment, it looked like Sakura was satisfied. The question, of course, was how long that would last.

xxxxx

"So how do you like your pizza, _Sasuke_?" Sakura asked, leaning over the lunch table with a big grin.

"Why are you doing this?" Sasuke asked abruptly, having long sense dropped his mask of civility. "What do you have against Naruto?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," the pink-haired girl replied, cheerily sipping her cola. "We're just finally having a little chat to get to know each other. I don't see how Naruto fits into the picture at all."

"You were threatening me, and you know it," the Uchiha continued in a dangerous whisper. "You're using Naruto to get to me, and I want to know why. Do you think I'm going to magically fall in love with you or something?"

"No," Sakura responded simply, her voice dropping its exaggerated sweetness. "To tell you the truth, I realized a long time ago that I wouldn't win you over just like that. Consider this my way of… coaxing you into it."

"It'll never work."

"It doesn't have to. You're going to have lunch with me here every day from now on, or else I'll tell everyone about how I saw the two of you canoodling in there. Got it?" Sakura continued, her whisper low enough not to attract any attention, but loud enough for Sasuke to hear every word.

_So that's her story, huh? Whether or not she actually saw anything, I have to play along with it. She may not be sure if it's true, but I know it is, and in the end that's all that matters._

"Now, then – put on a good act, won't you? I want to see that Ino squirm," Sakura said, shooting the aforementioned blonde a glare.

Sasuke shuddered, but leaned forward with a forced smile, saying, "Oh, Sakura – your hair's so pretty today. I just _love_ natural… pinks…"

_This is just what I needed… blackmail. I can't let her hurt Naruto, though… no matter what._

xxxxx

"That _bitch!_"

Naruto and Sasuke were walking along the streets of Konoha, making their way towards the Uchiha mansion. They hadn't had a chance to talk since their encounter with Sakura at lunch, and now that they could catch up, Naruto was letting out all his steam at once.

"I mean, who the hell does she think she is? Blackmail? Spying? She looked inside the guys' locker room, for chrissake," the blond exclaimed, gesticulating wildly into the air as he walked along. "We should tell principal Tsunade – she'll have her expelled so fast she'll get whiplash…"

"We can't, Naruto," Sasuke said calmly, though the hands in his pockets were clearly curled into fists. "The minute we try to stop her, she'll tell everyone she knows about the two of us, and then we're screwed. Besides, we'd have to tell Tsunade the truth, anyway, and then _we'd_ be the ones in trouble."

"But why? It's not like we did anything wrong!" Naruto continued, his brow furrowed in frustration.

"We were messing around in the locker room – it's what got us into this mess to begin with, remember?" the Uchiha replied, shaking his head in equal aggravation. "This is all my damn fault… I knew coming on to you like that was risky, but I did it anyway. I'm such an idiot…"

"No! This isn't our fault, Sasuke! We're the victims here! Sakura's the one who's being all crazy and manipulative, and now we're suffering for it!" Naruto interrupted in a stern voice. "Even if we hadn't done anything in the locker room today, she would've found another time to spring this on us. It was inevitable."

There was a silence for a moment as the couple walked along, both simply staring at the cracks in the sidewalk as they passed. Finally, Naruto coughed and turned to Sasuke with a weak smile.

"Sorry about that. I guess I got a little worked up."

"No, you're right. I can't blame myself for this – I can't help it if she has this… obsession with me. It's like when Gaara kissed you – it wasn't your fault. It just happened," Sasuke said as they crossed the street, steadily approaching the Uchiha's neighborhood. "Unfortunately, I don't think we can solve this one just by punching Sakura out."

"Wouldn't that be nice, though?" the blond asked dreamily. "In all seriousness, though, what are we gonna do about this? She's not going to just let this thing go, is she?"

"Probably not. She's hoping I'll fall for her if I spend enough time around her. There's no chance of that happening, but she's going to get more and more desperate to make it work. Right now it's just a lunchtime thing, but I'm sure that won't last long – soon she'll be making me take her out on dates or something…"

"So we have to do something soon, right?"

Sasuke ran a hand through his hair in exasperation. "What can we possibly do? If we make any move, she'll spill the beans without hesitation."

Naruto hesitated. There was one way they could get out of this mess, of course, though the blond was sure Sasuke wouldn't like it. If they made their relationship public, then Sakura would lose her trump card. Her only leverage at this point was their desire to keep things secret – that was something they could change.

_But… both of us have reasons to keep this secret. Sasuke hates the attention he gets as it is – if there's a new scandal for them to start gossiping about, then he'll only attract more of it. I'm sure he'd make that sacrifice for me – he knows how to deal with unwanted attention anyway – but that's not the real problem…_

The real problem, of course, was Naruto. Of the two of them, it was Naruto who was the least comfortable with his sexuality. Until he'd met Sasuke, the blond had never even considered that he might be attracted to another guy – the only crush he'd ever had was on Sakura, after all (though of course that attraction had died earlier that day). He knew now that he did have feelings for Sasuke – that he loved him, even – but to make that next step was something else entirely.

_What would Dad think? Maybe he already knows – he found Sasuke naked in my bed, after all… but why wouldn't he say anything, then? Is he waiting until I'm comfortable enough to tell him myself? But what if he was just distracted from losing his job… what if he'd hate me for it? What am I thinking – it's Dad! He'd love me no matter what… right?_

"I'm not letting her tell anyone, Naruto," Sasuke said suddenly, jarring the blond out of his thoughts. "And I know what you're thinking, and it's out of the question. I'm not going to let a prissy little bimbo like Sakura force us into anything, understand?"

Naruto glanced back down at the sidewalk as they stepped into the Uchiha's neighborhood, a slight smile crossing his lips. "Thanks, Sasuke."

Sasuke nodded as they started up the pavement of his driveway. After a moment of awkward silence, he cleared his throat and turned to his boyfriend with a smirk. "Now then, what do you say we forget about her and focus on us for a while?"

"Sounds like a plan," the blond replied with a grin. "Did you have anything in particular in mind?"

Sasuke glanced up at the sky. Though it had stopped raining since gym class, it was still cloudy – not exactly the best weather to do anything outdoors. "Well… we could always go for a swim, I guess."

"In your pool?" Naruto asked excitedly, only to frown in disappointment shortly afterward. "But… I don't have a suit with me."

"Oh, sure you do," Sasuke said devilishly, tugging on the vulpine boy's shirt. "You have the suit nature gave you."

Naruto felt the blood rush to his face as he stuttered, "B-but what about your brother? Isn't Itachi here?"

"He does have a job, you know – CEO of the Akatsuki Corporation? Or did you forget?" Sasuke asked as he threw open the front door. "He won't be home for hours. We'll be fine."

"But what about your servants? You said you had maids working throughout the house, right?" Naruto pressed, looking around the house nervously.

"Naruto, it's my house. This isn't school where we have to worry about Sakura listening in our anything – we'll be fine," Sasuke insisted. When he was met with Naruto's worried gaze, however, the Uchiha sighed. "Fine, I'll take care of it."

_Take care of it?_

Sasuke approached a small, white panel mounted on the wall by the door and pressed a round, red button in the corner. There was a crackle of static overhead, followed by the echoing of the young Uchiha's voice throughout the house. "Kohada – you and your team can go for the day. I'll tell my brother I let you go early."

Moments later, a woman's voice responded over the intercom through static. "Thank you, Sasuke. We'll be on our way, then."

Taking his finger off the button, Sasuke glanced over at Naruto in mild annoyance. "There, are you satisfied? Now let's get going!"

Naruto considered this for a moment before immediately stripping off his shirt and tossing it onto the floor. "Race you there!"

As Naruto broke into a sprint down the hall, Sasuke hurriedly kicked off his shoes and chased after him his eyes brimming with determination. Once he was in the kitchen, Naruto glanced back over his shoulder to find a now-shirtless Uchiha hot on his heels, at which point he stuck out his tongue tauntingly.

"Oh, you're just asking for it now!" Sasuke muttered as the duo bounded into the sunroom, where they passed by a very astonished Kohada, who was just finishing packing up her belongings.

Naruto was very fortunate that Kohada had left the sliding door to the pool deck wide open, for he was able to dart outside without stopping, giving him a narrow victory over his boyfriend. He raised his hands in the air triumphantly, and marched around the pool, singing, and "I am the champion I am the champion! No time for _losers_, 'cause I am the champion…"

"Please, you easily had a five second head start. You want a real race, then let's see who can finish a full lap the fastest," Sasuke challenged, his breathing a touch heavy from the sprint.

"Oh? So Sasuke thinks he can beat me at a race, huh?" Naruto said as he removed his socks and shoes. "Just because you have a pool doesn't mean you're the best swimmer in the world, you know. I'm from Mizu – the ocean's five minutes away from my house. You don't have a prayer."

"Is that so?" Sasuke asked as he unzipped his shorts and dropped them to the ground. He kicked them off to the side and stood in his navy boxers with his hands on his hips. "Why don't you put your money where your mouth is, tough guy?"

"Fine, I will," the blond responded, unzipping his own shorts. He hesitated before lowering them, however, and looked around nervously. "Are the servants still here?"

"They're gone, Naruto – Kohada's always the last to leave, and you just about plowed her over in the sun room. Here, I'll go first," the Uchiha answered before dropping his boxers to his ankles. He picked them up and spun them on his finger before tossing them into a nearby hedge, clearly unconcerned about his nudity. "Now your turn."

With a laugh, Naruto lowered his shorts and kicked them off to the side, standing in an equally naked state. The two stared at each other for a moment before scratching their arms awkwardly. "Well, then… are we gonna race or what?"

Sasuke snapped out of his momentary daze, forcing himself to shift his gaze away from Naruto's newly exposed flesh. "Oh, yeah – of course. On my count."

Standing at the edge of the pool, Naruto and Sasuke leaned over the water, preparing to dive in. While the blond stared forward with determination, Sasuke began the countdown. "Three… two… one…"

Both teens bended their knees in anticipation as Sasuke shouted out the final count, "GO!"

On that, the duo dived into the water, sending a small splash up into the air as they broke the surface. When they emerged, they were both kicking furiously, stirring the water in their wake as they propelled themselves further. Naruto, pulling himself forward with stroke after stroke, glanced over at Sasuke to find him a short distance behind him – in swimming, though, that short distance was all that he needed.

_If I can keep this up, I've got him…_

When Naruto reached the opposite wall, the distance between him and Sasuke had only grown. Unfortunately, the brief time he was stopped in trying to turn around closed the gap considerably, for when he finally kicked off, Sasuke had already begun a flip turn and was starting back towards the deep end.

_Shit!_

Naruto kicked as hard as he could while wearing his arms out with continuous strokes, but it was no use – Sasuke's experience swimming in a pool had given him a significant advantage at making the complicated turn. By the time Naruto had caught up, it was too late - Sasuke had placed a hand on the wall, beating the blond by a narrow margin.

Wiping some of the wet hair from his face, Sasuke looked over at Naruto with an exhausted smile. "Looks like I win this one. How did it go again? _I am the champion…_"

Naruto shook his head, sending some of the excess water flying in all directions, muttering, "Yeah, yeah – I guess I deserved that."

"Not as much as you deserve this!"

Without warning, Sasuke seized his boyfriend's shoulders and pushed him beneath the surface. Moments later, a sputtering Naruto rose to the surface, who immediately sought revenge. "Oh, it's on now!"

"You'll have to catch me first!"

Just as Naruto went to pounce on his boyfriend, Sasuke launched off the wall, sending a wave flying into the blond's face. Naruto didn't let this distract him, however, but instead followed right after the Uchiha, catching up with the raven-haired teen about halfway down the pool. There, Naruto seized Sasuke's foot, jerking him to an immediate halt before dragging him back to his clutches.

"There – I've caught you. Now what should I do?" Naruto asked, wrapping his arms around the struggling Uchiha. "Hmm… oh, wait! I know!"

Removing one hand from his grip, Naruto snaked it down Sasuke's backside, where he briefly squeezed his butt. Almost immediately, Sasuke yelped and forced himself away from his boyfriend, a light blush coloring his features. "You're playing dirty now."

"Is that a problem?" Naruto said with a coy smile.

"Not at all," Sasuke responded, swimming towards the blond. "It just surprised me. You were acting so cautious before."

"Can you blame me? The last few times we tried to do anything… intimate, we've been interrupted by someone. First it was my dad, then Sakura…"

The Uchiha smiled and pulled his boyfriend close into an embrace. "I guess you have a point. We've had a few close calls, haven't we?"

"It's not that I haven't enjoyed it – the danger… well, it makes it a bit exciting, right? But I don't want to get caught, you know?" Naruto responded, wrapping his arms around Sasuke's waist in turn.

"But since you don't have to worry about that here…"

"Then I can feel free to have some fun."

With that, Naruto leaned forward, successfully dunking the Uchiha beneath the surface with a playful laugh. Immediately he felt Sasuke's hands slip from his shoulders, sliding down instead to his legs. Moments later, he, too, was dragged underwater, where he glanced around, the chlorine slightly burning in his eyes. Soon, he discovered Sasuke, who was swimming towards him determinedly.

_What the hell's he doing?_

The answer to Naruto's question became perfectly clear seconds later, when Sasuke pulled the blond into a watery kiss. Holding onto one another, they rose to the surface, maintaining their kiss even as they burst from the water, breathing heavily through their noses. After a few seconds, they pulled out and burst into laughter.

"That didn't work well at all," Naruto said with an amused sigh.

"Neither did our pledge not to resort to making out," Sasuke commented, resting on the side of the pool. "Then again, I guess we made it a whole half hour – not bad for our first attempt."

Suddenly, a flash of lightning lit up the cloudy sky above. As the thunder rumbled in its wake, Sasuke glanced back at Naruto, looking somewhat disappointed. "Well, we should probably get out of the water, then. Stupid weather…"

"Hey, it's better than ending up fried, right?" the blond replied as he pulled himself out of the water. He turned and extended a hand to his boyfriend, who he helped clamber out of the pool as well. "Should we get dressed?"

Sasuke considered this for a moment before clasping his boyfriend's hand and dragging him forward, looking back over his shoulder with a playful smile. "No – I'm not through with you, yet. Let's go to the sauna."

"You have a sauna?" Naruto asked as he tried to keep up with the Uchiha.

"Yeah, it's great. Even better with company, though," Sasuke responded as he came to a halt before a small wooden shed on the outer edge of the pool deck. "Here we are."

After turning a dial on the outside of the sauna, Sasuke threw open the door and led Naruto inside. It was quite cool on the inside – the coals in the middle needed to heat up yet. Rubbing his wet arms for warmth, Naruto took a seat on one of the wooden benches, his teeth chattering somewhat.

"H-how long d-does it take to w-warm up?"

"Give it five minutes," Sasuke replied, taking a seat right beside the blond. "In the meantime, we can always generate some heat of our own…"

"I-I can l-live with that," Naruto said, moving closer to his boyfriend as he spoke.

Sasuke made the first move, throwing an arm over Naruto's shoulder to pull him into a kiss. His other hand he wrapped around the vulpine boy's waist, pulling him close to maximize their body contact. Naruto responded by pushing up against the Uchiha, leaning forward until Sasuke was lying flat on the bench, all the while locking lips. Using his arms to prop him up, lest he crush the raven-haired teen, Naruto laid his chest upon Sasuke's and closed his eyes, focusing entirely on their kiss as the sauna slowly heated up. Apparently, Sasuke fully supported this and wrapped his legs around Naruto's, effectively intertwining them and forcing their continued physical connection.

"Umm… Sasuke…" Naruto began, glancing down sheepishly.

"I know, I know – just shut up and kiss me," Sasuke urged, pulling the blond's head back down to his level.

By this point, the sauna was noticeably hot, causing the two teens to sweat noticeably as they made out on the bench. Naruto still felt a bit awkward to have his excited state rubbing so obviously against Sasuke, but decided to follow his boyfriend's orders and focus on the kiss. He pulled out briefly, sucking gently on the Uchiha's lower lip before locking with them once more. There, he let his tongue slip inside Sasuke's mouth, where it began to play with the other teen's. A growing pressure down south told Naruto that he wasn't the only one enjoying this, and a small moan emitted by Sasuke only confirmed this suspicion.

Soon, Naruto pulled out of the kiss and moved on to Sasuke's neck, where he greedily licked up the Uchiha's sweat, planting numerous kisses along the way. There was a slight disruption in the blond's pattern as Sasuke bucked, moving his hands from Naruto's back to his butt in the process. Feeling a slight squeeze, Naruto began to kiss more fervently, sliding down further to his boyfriend's chest. There, with Sasuke's hands still firmly planted on his butt, Naruto proceeded to playfully lick the Uchiha's nipples, glancing up at the raven-haired teen as he did so. Rather than meet his boyfriend's familiar eyes, however, he met the distinct, reddish eyes of Itachi Uchiha, who was staring at them from the doorway, a towel wrapped around his waist.

"Am I interrupting something?" the elder Uchiha asked, eyeing the intermingling of flesh and sweat with distant curiosity.

"Itachi! Get the hell out of here!" Sasuke shouted, his face burning with embarrassment as he tried to disentangle himself from Naruto. Once they were both free, they stood awkwardly, covering their groins in shame.

"So sorry – I should've knocked," Itachi said as he backed out of the sauna. "You two have fun, now."

Once the door had creaked shut, Naruto and Sasuke sat down on the bench, avoiding eye contact with each other. Though both were still very obviously aroused from their little make out session in the heat, neither one was eager to pick off where they'd left off – the mood had been ruined.

Finally, it was Sasuke who broke the silence with a sigh. "We really need to try this somewhere private."

"Agree," Naruto said, shaking his head in embarrassment. "Just once I'd like to actually do something without being spied on or caught in the act."

"Any ideas on what we could do?"

Naruto thought about this. What could they really do? What had worked before? Whenever they made out at his apartment, it seemed like someone always came in at the wrong time. If it wasn't Kiba, it was Iruka or something. As for the Uchiha mansion, Itachi had just proven that they couldn't hide from him, no matter how large the house was. The only thing that they'd really gotten away with was when they'd made out under the bridge in the park – oddly enough, the place where they ran the greatest risk of getting caught.

_That's it!_

"Have you ever been to Lake Konoha?" Naruto asked abruptly, turning to the Uchiha with wide-eyed anticipation.

"Lake Konoha? Is that around here or something?" Sasuke responded, blinking perplexedly.

"You've lived in Konoha your entire life, but you've never been to Lake Konoha?" the blond exclaimed in disbelief. "It's about an hour from here if we walk. There's usually a bus that goes that way – it'll take us twenty minutes tops. There's a park out that way, and you just take a little hike through the woods to the lake. It's very secluded – hardly anyone ever goes out there around this time of year."

"You're saying we should go out to the middle of nowhere just to have a chance to make out?"

"Well, that and we can count it as a date, right? What do you say?"

Sasuke mulled it over for a minute, clearly not thrilled by the idea. The sight of Naruto's pleading pout was all it took to break his will, however. "All right – we'll go this weekend, okay?"

"Great! We'll work out the details later. In the meantime, what do you say we get some clothes on?" the blond asked, rising from the bench with renewed energy.

"Sounds like a plan. We should probably actually get some homework done, anyway," the Uchiha responded as he followed Naruto out of the sauna to the pool deck, where they spent a few minutes searching for their clothes. Once they were dressed, they headed up to Sasuke's room to work on their math homework, though both were very distracted by the plans they had just made.

_A date with Sasuke… I want everything to be _perfect_…_

xxxxx

Iruka stood in the bathroom of his new apartment that night, shoving a toothbrush into his mouth with one hand while awkwardly combing his hair with the other. He had agreed to meet Kakashi for dinner, but had fallen behind grading papers, and was now hurrying to get ready in time. It felt very odd, being in Konoha – somewhere just on the other side of town, Naruto was living with Kiba. They were so close physically, but somehow they felt as distant as they had when he was still in Mizu.

_I've been here for close to a week, and he hasn't even stopped by to see my new apartment once… It's like he doesn't even want to see what his new home is like!_

Iruka yanked the toothbrush out of his mouth and spit into the sink. He grabbed a glass of water and rinsed before setting the toothbrush back on the counter with a sigh. It wasn't like he could blame Naruto, exactly – he had his routine, his own pattern of life in Konoha. Iruka was just an intruder. Sure, he knew that Naruto wasn't trying to avoid him – but somehow Iruka found it a bit depressing. He wasn't sure what exactly it was, but somehow the brunet felt certain that he was missing out on something important in Naruto's life. The distance he'd felt when talking to him the other day was unusual – it was as if Naruto was keeping a secret from him.

_What am I thinking? Naruto wouldn't keep anything big from me. He told me about his love problems, right? I can't think of anything harder to talk about with your dad than that…_

A sudden chime of the doorbell snapped Iruka out of his thoughts. In a hurry, he set down his comb and rushed out of the bathroom to his bedroom, where he ruffled through his drawers for some fresh clothes.

_Does he expect me to dress up for this? We're just friends, right? But I don't want to look like hell…_

"I'm coming!" Iruka called as he yanked off his shirt, pulling out a silver dress shirt from his closet.

After slipping on his shirt, he removed his plain, khaki workpants and searched for some dress pants. Unfortunately, Iruka realized he hadn't yet unpacked everything, including some of his clothes. As the doorbell rang an additional time, he rushed over to one of the several boxes, which he tore open in a flash.

_Come on! Come on! I know I have some black pants in here somewhere…_

"Good~ evening."

Standing with several pairs of pants in either hand, Iruka spun around to find a silver-haired man leaning against the doorframe, the impression of a smile visible through his mask. He was dressed head-to-toe in black, with only a red tie adding a bit of color to his ensemble. Iruka smiled sheepishly as he glanced at the pants in his arms. "S-sorry… I'm running a little late."

"I can see that," Kakashi responded, glancing furtively at the other man's striped boxers. "Sorry for intruding – the door was unlocked."

"No, no – it's fine," Iruka replied, sounding somewhat flustered as he pulled up a black pair of pants. As he pulled on his belt, he looked up at the other man, trying to regain his composure. "So, where are we going tonight?"

"I was thinking the Konoha Grill," the masked man said, moving away from the door to let Iruka pass. "Nothing too fancy – they have amazing steak though. Do you like steak?"

"Can't go wrong with a good steak," Iruka returned with a nod. "I just hope it isn't too expensive – I'm still a little short on cash, you know?"

"Oh, no worries there. It's my treat tonight," Kakashi said, patting the other on the back with a smile. "You're new in town, after all. Consider this your welcome gift."

"As if you haven't done enough for me already," the brunet chuckled as they stepped out of the apartment. He locked it behind them before heading for Kakashi's cherry-red convertible.

"It's my pleasure, really," Kakashi responded, climbing into the convertible. He leaned over to unlock the passenger side for Iruka before sticking the keys in the ignition. "Now, then – buckle up."

With that, Kakashi threw the car into drive, starting down the streets of Konoha with a surprising amount of focus. Every turn was signaled, every speed limit sign obeyed – it was almost obsessive. Iruka found it a little unsettling, driving in utter silence: no radio, no conversation – just the hum of the engine as they rolled along.

_He's usually so talkative… is he really that serious about driving? Or maybe he hasn't gone this way in a while – there are a lot of one-way streets. Wouldn't want to make a wrong turn, right?_

After a few minutes of eerie silence, Kakashi turned into a parking lot on the right, pulling into a spot in the back corner of the lot. There, he turned off the engine and looked to Iruka with his usual, warm smile, saying, "Well, we're here!"

The shift was quite jarring for Iruka, who could only nod as he stepped out of the car. After the cool autumn air hit him, however, he seemed to come around and joined in Kakashi's enthusiasm. "So… you recommend the steak, then?"

"Definitely. As long as you don't get it well done, you'll love it," Kakashi responded, holding open the restaurant door for Iruka before entering himself.

Iruka nodded, watching the other man with relief. He had been concerned for a minute that something was wrong, but Kakashi had apparently bounced back. Whatever was on the other man's mind in the car was no longer an issue, and thus not of Iruka's concern.

_Still… I wonder why he was acting so strangely? Is he really that serious about his driving?_

"Just the two of you today?"

Iruka glanced up to find the maitre d' staring at him, a clearly forced smile on his face. He gently twirled his pencil moustache as he awaited a response, glancing back and forth between Iruka and Kakashi.

"Yes, just us two," Kakashi finally answered, patting Iruka on the shoulder.

Grabbing two menus from a slot to his side, the maitre d turned to the duo and bowed briefly. "Right this way, sirs."

Together, Kakashi and Iruka followed the maitre d' through the restaurant to their table, just past the bar in the center of the restaurant. Iruka glanced around the room as they walked, eyeing all the miscellanea on the walls as they passed by. It seemed like a nice enough place – good atmosphere, just a little noise coming from the bar, but otherwise filled with soft chatter from other patrons. This didn't particularly bother Iruka, who had feared the worst with rowdy drunks or screeching children running around. Instead, the man could examine the different records, license plates, and other pieces of Americana with a sense of warm nostalgia.

When they finally arrived at their table, Kakashi and Iruka took their seats while the maitre d' placed the menus on the table, his forced smile stretching wide. "There you go, folks. A waiter will be with you shortly to take your order."

"Thank you," Iruka said politely as he unfolded his menu. He studied it for a moment, searching for the steak, before realizing that there was an entire page dedicated to different varieties of steaks, many of which he'd never even heard of. "What's a carpetbag steak? Or a popeseye steak?"

"Just ignore those – you want the porterhouse," Kakashi replied without so much as glancing up from his own menu. "That's what I'm going with at least."

"I take it they specialize in steak, then?" Iruka said, looking almost dizzy as he closed the menu.

"Well, it is called the Konoha Grill – did you think they'd have a lot of salad or something?" Kakashi quipped, shutting his own menu with a smirk. "I know what you mean, though – I thought the same thing when I came here the first time."

"How long ago was that, out of curiosity?" the brunet asked, leaning forward slightly. "Have you been in Konoha that long?"

"I've been here a while – I guess it's been over ten years now. I graduated from Konoha Academy just outside the city. That's where I met O–"

Kakashi froze. He stared down at the folded menu on the table, unable to utter a word. Though he tried to maintain his gentle expression, Iruka could tell there was something wrong. He'd fallen on a touchy subject – something about Kakashi's past that he was clearly reluctant to reveal.

"Hi! My name's Ayame, I'll be your waitress today!" a teenage girl interrupted, wearing a genuine smile as she pulled out a notepad. "Can I get you two something to drink today?"

"If you don't mind, I think we're actually ready to order," Iruka replied, giving the silver-haired man a moment to regain his composure. "We both want the porterhouse, right, Kakashi?"

Kakashi looked stunned, as if he hadn't even noticed Ayame's presence. "Oh, yes – that'd be great."

Ayame made a quick note before watching the duo expectantly once again. "All right, great choice! And to drink?"

"Lemonade," Kakashi answered distantly.

"I'll have a Coke, I guess," Iruka replied, trying his best to hide his concern.

Ayame finished her note and flashed a bright smile. "Great! It'll be just a minute – just holler if you need anything in the meantime!"

As Ayame ran off to the kitchen with their order, Iruka turned to Kakashi with a sense of determination. He wasn't sure what Kakashi was hiding from him, but Iruka was going to find out what it was, whether the masked man liked it or not. "So… Kakashi. You were saying something about Konoha Academy?"

"Oh, forget about it – it wasn't important anyway," Kakashi mumbled, staring up at the walls. "Look at that, they have a replica of one of Elvis' gold records…"

"Come on, Kakashi – I'm interested! You must have all kinds of good stories from your swingin' college days, eh?" Iruka prodded with a playful wink.

Kakashi smiled weakly and leaned back in his chair, chuckling to himself. "Me? Not really, no. I had someone to keep me in line."

"Really? And who was that?" Iruka pressed, leaning forward in anticipation.

"His name was Obito," Kakashi said with a sigh. "We met in one of our education courses. Honestly I don't know how I would've passed that class without him."

"Obito? Funny – I don't think you've mentioned him before. Is he a teacher here, too?" Iruka asked casually in an attempt to keep the conversation going.

"He… passed away six years ago," Kakashi responded, covering his face with his hand. "We were going to move in together…"

Iruka didn't know what to say. Everything Kakashi had just said was loaded with meaning. Clearly, Obito was more than just a friend if they were planning on moving in together. Did that mean that Kakashi was gay? If not, he was at the very least bisexual.

_Wait… then does that mean this is…a date?"_

"I'm sorry to hear that," Iruka said, staring down at his napkin uncomfortably. "I didn't mean to bring up bad memories."

"No, that's all right. I don't have any bad memories of him," Kakashi replied, wiping his eye quickly with his finger, "only regrets that I couldn't make any more."

"Was it sudden?"

The masked man glanced up at one of the license plates on the wall and sighed. "There was an accident. We'd gone out for a night on the town and were driving home. I was drunk, so Obito decided to drive me home. We were almost at my apartment when it happened. The light turned green, so Obito pulled out into the intersection when another car slammed into the driver's side. Apparently he'd been drinking, too – didn't even see the red light. Of course, he got off scot-free, but Obito and I weren't so lucky."

"Maybe we should save this for another time," Iruka interrupted, reaching a hand across the table to pat Kakashi's hand consolingly. "I don't want this to upset you."

"No, I insist. It's… cathartic to talk about it every once and a while," Kakashi continued, grasping the other man's hand gratefully. "I don't remember much about the accident itself – I was drunk at the time, after all. I remember hearing the glass shatter on impact, and I know I must've bashed my head into the dashboard when we hit the lamppost. I lost consciousness not too long afterward.

"When I woke up, I had a bandage over my eye," the silver-haired teacher said, indicating the scar around his left eye. "My head felt like it was going to explode, but I didn't particularly care – I just wanted to know if Obito was okay. I grabbed the first nurse I could find to ask her where he was, and that's when I got the news. He'd died almost instantly."

"Kakashi…" Iruka said, his eyes watering up at the other man's pain.

"Apparently my eye was damaged when I hit my head on the dashboard – piece of glass cut right through it. They needed to operate immediately, and Obito was an available donor," Kakashi brushed his hand over his red eye, gently feeling the scar. "Long story short, I have his cornea – every morning when I look at myself in the mirror, I can't help but see him staring back at me. It's… strangely comforting, I guess."

They were silent for a moment, neither one knowing exactly what to say. Much to Iruka's relief, however, Ayame reappeared before to long with their meals, giving them a much-needed reprieve.

"All right! Two porterhouse steaks, a lemonade, _and_ a coke!" Ayame said cheerily as she set the aforementioned items down on the table. "Enjoy your meal!"

"Thank you," Iruka responded with a nod before taking a sip from his coke.

While Iruka tried to eat, despite the sinking feeling in his gut, he looked up at Kakashi to find him simply staring at the steak before him. Clearly Kakashi still had something more to say, and Iruka knew it would be up to him to get the conversation going once again. Setting down his fork and knife, he dabbed his lips with a napkin before sitting upright, giving the masked man his full attention.

"Was it hard? Losing Obito?" Iruka asked tentatively.

"It's never easy losing someone you care about," Kakashi responded, prodding his steak with a fork. "Obito was no exception, of course. I was devastated – I just couldn't believe that he was gone, you know? But that wasn't the worst of it."

"What do you mean?"

Kakashi took a sip from his lemonade before mechanically setting it back on the table. "Losing Obito was hard, but it was living without him that was truly difficult. Everything reminded me of him – something as simple as the rain could make me depressed. And no matter what, every time I thought of Obito, I was overwhelmed with guilt. If I hadn't been drinking, I would've been the one driving – I should've been the one crushed in that accident. Or what if I could've avoided it? Obito died… because of my own stupidity."

"Kakashi… you can't blame yourself. You didn't know what was going to happen – how could you have? What's done is done."

The masked man sighed, resting his head on his hand. "I know – rationally, I know there's nothing I could've done. It was just… fate, or something. But it'll haunt me for the rest of my life. I haven't even been able to touch alcohol since that day – I don't want there to be a next time, you know?"

Iruka nodded, but said nothing. What could he possibly say after that story? 'It'll be okay? When God closes a door he opens a window?' He knew from experience that it wouldn't help. Those kinds of losses needed time to heal – words would only belittle that kind of trauma.

The duo ate the rest of their meal, not once bringing up the subject of Obito again. They made idle chat – talking about Iruka's new job, his class, the teachers – but both were very much aware of the elephant in the room. When Ayame brought the check at the end of their meal, Kakashi paid it with his usual, gentle smile before leading Iruka out to his car. As they pulled out of the parking lot, Iruka couldn't help but notice a slight trembling in Kakashi's hands as he gripped the wheel.

_Is that why he was so focused on his driving? Is he afraid I'll be another Obito?_

Iruka kept the thought to himself, and instead turned his attention to the lights of the city as they drove past. Within a few minutes, they arrived outside the brunet's apartment, where they both got out of the car and started up the stairs.

"Did you have a good time?" Kakashi asked casually, standing outside Iruka's door.

"Oh, it was great – you were right about the porterhouse," Iruka replied with a forced laugh. "Sorry if I made things awkward."

"It's all right – I wanted to tell you," the silver-haired man replied.

Both men hesitated for a moment, with Iruka scratching his arm uncertainly, glancing briefly at the door. "Well, I don't want to hold you up."

"I'm sure you still have to get unpacked or something – and I should probably get around to grading papers at some point tonight…"

"Wouldn't want to fall behind, right?" the brunet said, reaching for his keys. "Well, good night, then."

"Good night," Kakashi responded in turn as Iruka threw open the door. "Wait, Iruka…"

Iruka glanced back over his shoulder to find Kakashi had removed his mask, revealing the lower half of his face. His eyes widening, Iruka found himself blushing at the sight.

_Why would he want to cover that up?_

"K-kakashi?" Iruka stuttered as he backed up to the door.

Before either of them could utter another word, Kakashi grabbed hold of Iruka and pulled him into an embrace. There, underneath the porch light, they shared a brief kiss, one that neither of them was fully prepared for. When they pulled out after a few long seconds, they stared at one another, both noticeably red-faced, before taking an awkward step back from each other.

"Um… I guess I should be going, then," Kakashi said, pulling up his mask once more.

"You can come in if you'd like," Iruka offered, indicating the open door behind him.

"No, that's all right. Maybe some other time?" Kakashi asked hopefully.

"It's a date."

With that, Iruka waved goodbye and watched as Kakashi hopped into his car and drove into the night. Once the masked man's car was just a small blip in the distance, he shut the door and collapsed onto the couch, staring up at the ceiling with a broad smile crossing his lips.I think I'm going to like it here in Konoha…

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Well, there you have it! Hopefully you enjoyed it. I'll have the next chapter up as soon as possible, and remember: review!


	29. Sound of Silence

Merry Christmas, everyone! Sorry this chapter is so late. I had exams that messed everything up, and then when I finally got around to writing it, I ended up scrapping the entire thing and rewrote it. Sorry it's so short - I thought this scene deserved to stand by itself. I'll try to have the next one up faster. Anyway, thanks for your patience and your comments - now, on with the chapter!

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29. Sound of Silence

"What about your sister?"

"She's going shopping with Shikamaru – she won't be back for hours."

"But… Kankuro! Isn't he here?"

"No, he has a show tonight. Apparently somebody in the world still likes puppeteers. Now, quit stalling – we're all alone, okay?"

Gaara was up in his room, looming over Lee, who he had pinned to his bed. Over behind the door lay a pile of their clothes, save for their underwear, which they had managed to keep on in their fervent make out session. It was when Gaara made a move to slip off the other teen's briefs that Lee had second thoughts, thus leading to their current predicament.

"Are you sure? I mean… I don't want you to get in trouble or anything," Lee said awkwardly as the redhead curled a finger around the waistband of his briefs.

"Please – they don't scare me," Gaara replied with a laugh as he snapped the waistband.

"Then why haven't you told any of them about us?"

Gaara remained unfazed by this question, but simply crawled up towards Lee's face, where he greedily licked the teen's neck. "You honestly think Temari and Kankuro don't know what's going on? We don't need to announce it to the world or anything."

"What about your dad?" Lee asked seriously, gently pushing the redhead to the side. "Does he know?"

"I couldn't care less about what he thinks," Gaara said bitterly, his eyes narrowing. "But I'm certainly not going to tell him – he wouldn't listen anyway."

"That's not fair, Gaara. Your dad isn't that bad…"

"What are you talking about? You saw how he was the other day! The guy's a monster!" The moody teen snapped, sitting back on the bed with his arms crossed. "Honestly, I hope he drops dead – do the rest of the world a favor."

Lee sat up as well and scooted over to his boyfriend, wrapping his arms around the teen's shoulders. "You don't really mean that. Even if he's a little… gruff, he's still your father. It's like Gai-sensei always says, 'A father is your leader in the springtime of youth.' You're just focusing too much on the negatives."

Gaara turned his head slightly, gazing into Lee's big, owl eyes. For a moment he retained his bitterness, but it soon melted away. "Gai-sensei says that, right? I guess it must be true, then."

"Exactly!" Lee responded cheerily, only to pause in confusion at the redhead's sudden laughter. "Wait… you're making fun of me, aren't you?"

"Can you blame me? You make it so easy," Gaara said before tipping Lee's chin upward with his finger. He planted a brief kiss on the mop-topped teen's lips before pulling back out with a smile.

"Well, it's mean!" Lee pouted, turning his head away as he blushed. "And don't think you can win me back over just like that, either."

"You're right – how about this?"

With that, Gaara pounced on Lee, pinning his boyfriend onto the bed once more. There, he proceeded to kiss the teen, starting up at Lee's lips before traveling down to his neck. From there, he moved down to Lee's chest, at which point he paused, savoring the taste of the firm muscles.

_So this is where all that training pays off…_

Satisfied with the chest, Gaara moved on to Lee's abs, which were similarly defined and impressive. Finally, the redhead reached his boyfriend's briefs, which he grabbed with both hands, gingerly pulling them down as he kissed lower and lower.

"What the _hell_ is going on here?"

Gaara froze. His head still, buried in Lee's crotch, he glanced up to find a very enraged man with short, brown hair and a business suit standing in the doorway. A quick look at Lee showed that he, too, was paralyzed, unable to do anything but stare at the unexpected arrival.

_Shit…_

"Gaara! Are you deaf or something? I'm waiting for an explanation here!"

"Dad, you remember Lee, right?" Gaara said simply, wiping some of the saliva from his lips as he lifted his head. "I suppose this is as good a time as any to tell you… he's my boyfriend."

"Well, that's a relief. For a second I was afraid my son was just some kind of man-whore. Instead I get to learn he's a faggot. Incredible!" Mr. Subakuno roared, slamming the door shut as he stepped into the room.

"I-I'm sorry… I should go," Lee stuttered, pulling up his briefs awkwardly.

"No, no! Please, stay! I have so many questions I want to ask you," Mr. Subakuno interrupted, looming over the two teens. "Like, how long have you been corrupting my son? A few months? Years? Did you honestly think I wouldn't find out, you little cocksucker?!"

With that, Mr. Subakuno shoved Lee back, causing the teen to bump his head against the wall with a thud. Before he could make another move, however, Gaara leaped off the bed and stood between his father and his lover.

"Leave him out of this, Dad. He didn't do anything to me," the redhead growled, glaring up at the man.

"You shut your mouth!" Mr. Subakuno roared, backhanding his son fiercely. "I have nothing to say to you right now. He knew you were keeping this from me, Gaara, but he didn't tell me. You both tried to keep me in the dark, and for that you're both guilty."

"Guilty of what?" Gaara challenged, doing his best to ignore his father's attack. "We care about each other, Dad. Isn't that all that really matters?"

"Oh, don't give me that bullshit! You can spin it any way you want, but the fact is you two are just a couple of faggots trying to do your dirty little deed under my roof," Mr. Subakuno continued, briefly stumbling back from an apparent loss of balance. It was only then that Gaara noticed how bleary-eyed his father was, and how his words were somewhat slurred. "I'm just glad your mother isn't alive to see this…"

Gaara froze. "I wish she was. Mom would be happy that I found someone who's important to me. She wasn't a cold-hearted bastard like you."

"Like you'd know," Mr. Subakuno spat, his eyes narrowing dangerously. "What the hell gives you the right to talk about her like that, anyway? It's because of you that she's not around anymore. You're the one that destroyed this family. And you know what the worst part of it all is? We didn't even want you."

"W-what did you just say?" Gaara asked, his blood running cold.

"Oh, didn't you know? What am I thinking, of course you didn't! Well, let me tell you. After Temari and Kankuro, your mother and I decided not to have any more kids. Well, it turns out she forgot to take her pill one day and, next thing we knew, she was pregnant. She never even considered an abortion – though that clearly would've been the better move in retrospect – and as she got late in her pregnancy, she started to grow ill. She knew that you were killing her, and she resented you for it. Still, she was too good of a person to let you die in her place," Mr. Subakuno snarled, staring down his son maliciously. "She never loved you, Gaara. You were nothing but a parasite to her. And now I'm gonna do what she never had the courage to do herself."

The first swing came so quickly that Gaara barely even had time to register what had happened. One minute he was staring down his dad, the next he was lying flat on his bed, dazed, with a stream of blood running down his nose.

"Wait! Mr. Subakuno, don't!" Lee exclaimed, unsure of what to do as he watched in horror from the corner.

"You shut the hell up, or you're next!" Mr. Subakuno barked before delivering a swift punch to Gaara's stomach.

The redheaded teen coughed, the previous blow having knocked the wind out of him. He wasn't sure what was wrong with him – he would've beaten any other opponent into submission by now. For whatever reason, though, actually being struck by his father had left Gaara utterly shocked. He could barely even feel the succeeding punches to his stomach and face – it was like he was numbed, only able to sense the vague pressure of fists crashing against his body.

_This is what he really thinks of me, then – what he's always thought of me. I'm just a monster to him… just a burden…_

What happened next was all a blur. After taking an unknown number of blows, Gaara's reflexes seemed to take over as he grabbed Mr. Subakuno's fist just before it could land yet another punch. With what seemed to be inhuman strength, Gaara then struck the seized wrist, causing his father to scream out in agony as the bone fractured. Moments later, Gaara had leaped off the bed, tackling Mr. Subakuno to the ground, throttling the man viciously. Kicking wildly, Mr. Subakuno struggled for breath, his eyes beginning to bulge slightly before he finally managed to buck Gaara off of him. Grabbing his throat, Mr. Subakuno rolled onto his knees, glaring menacingly at son before charging.

Then it happened. Gaara saw the malice in his father's eyes and, out of reflex more than anything else, kicked. His heel collided with Mr. Subakuno's nose with a sickening crunch.

Although both Gaara and Lee were breathing heavily, the room seemed to go silent. It was as if space was momentarily frozen, with Gaara unable to look away from the growing pool of blood at his feet. Mr. Subakuno lay on the floor, his dulled eyes staring into space as his crushed nose gradually stained the beige carpet a sickening crimson. Tentatively, Gaara reached forward with his toe and nudged the man's head, causing it to loll to the side. The eyes remained dull and unfocused, though, and his body didn't so much as twitch. He was dead.

_No… no!_

"Get up, damn you!" Gaara exclaimed suddenly, kicking Mr. Subakuno's head once more. He tried pounding on the man's body, shouting in his ears as he did so. "Don't do this to me, you fucking bastard!"

That was when Gaara saw his hands – they were coated in blood. He stared in horror, his breaths becoming short and quick as he pulled at his hair in a panic.

He screamed.

----

And, that's that. Fear not - Gaara's fate will be explained in the coming chapters. In the meantime, thank you for reading, and remember - review!


	30. Counting the Cars on the Konoha Turnpike

All right! New chapter, guys! This one's longer than the last one, and it's also significantly lighter in tone. I wanted to break things up again after all of the dark seriousness of the previous chapter. Anyway, I hope you enjoy the first chapter of 2010, and please remember to review! Now, without further ado, on with the chapter!

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30. Counting the Cars on the Konoha Turnpike

Sasuke stared out the window of the bus, watching as the trees passed by in a green blur. It was Friday evening, and he and Naruto had just left to go spend some time out by Lake Konoha. Over the horizon, Sasuke could just see the sun setting, casting an orange glow over the sky as they drove onward. It felt strange, being outside of Konoha like this. Even though Sasuke had lived in the city his entire life, he had never really explored the outskirts of the city, and was now surprised to see all the wildlife that was growing just miles from his home.

"Nice, isn't it?" Naruto asked, poking his head over the Uchiha's shoulder with a grin. "Just wait till we get to the park – it's amazing."

"I wonder if Shikamaru's ever come out this way," Sasuke asked absent-mindedly. "I'm sure he'd love to look at the clouds out here…"

Indeed, even from the speeding bus, Sasuke could clearly see the swirling clouds overhead. It was much easier to take them in without the skyscrapers clogging up the sky – made everything seem more peaceful.

_So this is why he's always watching them…_

"You could always give him a call, you know," Naruto said, glancing over at his boyfriend amusedly.

Sasuke shrugged. "He won't answer, anyway. He's on a date with Temari tonight – apparently they're going shopping or something."

"Oh, he's gotta be loving that," the blond responded, rolling his eyes.

"He probably thinks of it as a break – as long as he's away from home, he doesn't have to worry about Gaara harassing him."

Naruto considered this for a moment. "You don't think Gaara would actually interfere, do you?"

"Nah, he probably just wants to scare Shikamaru more than anything else. Still… I wouldn't put it past him. I think if you push him far enough, Gaara's capable of just about anything," Sasuke responded, finally tearing his eyes away from the window.

"You may be right," Naruto replied, staring vacantly at an old woman across the aisle. "I really think Gaara's mellowed out in the past few weeks, though. I mean, he isn't trying to kill you anymore."

"As far as we know, anyway," Sasuke said enigmatically.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, for all we know, Gaara could be using all of us – earning our trust before finally turning on us…"

"Don't say that, Sasuke!" Naruto exclaimed, raising his hands in mild outrage. "Gaara's been trying really hard – just look at the progress he's made with Lee!"

Sasuke chuckled at his boyfriend's indignation. "I'm joking, I'm joking. Look, everyone can tell Gaara's changed – it's like night and day."

"Then why would you lie about something like that?" Naruto pouted, his arms crossed seriously.

Sasuke burst into laughter. "Because your reactions are priceless!"

As Naruto became quite animated in protesting Sasuke's claims (and, ironically, proving them in the process) the Uchiha maintained his mask of amusement. Though he'd insisted he was only joking, the truth was Sasuke still had some reservations about Gaara. It wasn't just because the redhead had basically sexually assaulted Naruto, either – though that certainly _was _a part of it. The real problem for Sasuke, though, was much harder to put a finger on. To him, something about Gaara simply seemed… unstable. Sure, having Naruto and Lee around helped Gaara psychologically, but Sasuke couldn't shake the feeling that any sort of turbulence would shatter that apparent calm in an instant. And if it was something particularly traumatic…

_No! I don't want to think about that. There's no sense in being negative – just focus on the present… with Naruto._

"And another thing! Just because I get a little excited about things doesn't mean I'm worse than you Mr. Ice King…"

"We're here," Sasuke interrupted in a monotone, pointing out the window.

As the bus turned to the left, Naruto pressed his face up against the glass excitedly, forgetting all about whatever point he was trying to make. Meanwhile, Sasuke leaned back in his seat, resting his head on his head as he, too, admired the view.

_I'll be damned… he was right!_

Truly, Lake Konoha National Park was a sight to behold. Even from the parking lot, Sasuke could tell that the area was just as majestic as Naruto had described – if not more so. With its scattered pine trees towering up on the hills to the massive oaks stretching high into the orange sky, Lake Konoha was the definition of picturesque. Though it was not quite night, Sasuke could see a few deer prancing on the outskirts of the forest, pausing only briefly at the sound of passing vehicles. There was just one thing that seemed to be off about the whole scene, and it didn't take Sasuke long to put a finger on just what that was.

"Where's the lake?"

"Through the woods, of course," Naruto replied, turning to Sasuke with a grin. "You didn't think we'd be driving right up to the shore, did you?"

"Well… no," Sasuke replied somewhat embarrassedly. "I just thought we'd be able to see it, at least."

"What's the fun in that, though? It's all about the journey, Sasuke!"

"The journey?" the Uchiha asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Right! Hiking through the woods, surrounded by nature – it's incredible!" Naruto said, waving his hand through the air dramatically.

_Hiking? Tell me he's joking…_

"How far is it, then?"

Naruto placed a hand to his chin in thought. "Hmm… maybe fifteen minutes? Twenty tops – and that's only if we take the scenic route."

"Which we won't," Sasuke interrupted with finality.

"Right – I wouldn't want to get lost out here anyway," the blond said reassuringly. "Trust me, though – it'll be worth the trip."

Sasuke gazed out the window once more as the bus rolled to a stop. He sighed. "Well, you've been right so far. Let's go."

With that, the duo rose from their seats and exited the bus, along with the old lady, a middle-aged man who looked like a maintenance worker, and a trio of older teens who clearly had a case of adolescent boredom. While these other passengers immediately headed for the rest area sitting just beside the parking lot, Naruto dragged Sasuke by the arm to a nearby trail that delved into the woods.

"Please tell me you know where we're going," Sasuke asked, scanning the surrounding forest worriedly.

"Of course I do! They make these things idiot-proof, Sasuke. As long as we stick to the main path, we'll be just fine," Naruto responded, glancing back over his shoulder as the couple pressed onward.

They walked along in this manner for some time, with Sasuke's reluctance fading just from the proximity to Naruto's abundant enthusiasm. It was like osmosis, with Naruto's excess joy gradually filling in the Uchiha's deficit. Though Sasuke remained indifferent to some of the forest's attractions, like "the leaf that kinda looks like Jay Leno," for every odd looking pinecone he pointed out, Naruto had several genuinely interesting things to say about the surrounding wildlife. The massive oak that had been split down the middle by lightning, the speckled owl perched on a low-hanging branch, the crystalline stream trickling alongside the path – they were all fascinating stops on Naruto's tour of the forest.

By the time the young couple made it through the forest's winding path to the lake, the sun was just disappearing beneath the hills, sending off a final flash of purple over the calm water.

"And this," Naruto began, placing both hands on the Uchiha's shoulders, "Is Lake Konoha."

Sasuke stared out at the water for a moment as the stars popped into existence overhead, coating the lake in specks of light. "It's… beautiful…"

Taking a seat on a nearby tree stump, Sasuke and Naruto sat in silence, taking in the spectacle of Lake Konoha on that tranquil autumn night. A gentle breeze blew a cool mist past the duo, causing them to huddle together for warmth. With his head resting on Naruto's shoulder, Sasuke stared up at the moon overhead – it was only half-full, but it still seemed to shine brilliantly, giving the land below an almost ethereal quality.

"This is nice," Sasuke murmured, breaking the silence in spite of himself.

"We have the whole place to ourselves – no one else in the world." Naruto replied in a hushed tone before planting a quick kiss on his boyfriend's lips. Before Sasuke could truly start to enjoy this kiss, though, Naruto pulled back quite abruptly with a devilish smirk. "Want to have some fun?"

_Oh boy…_

"What are you planning, Naruto?" Sasuke asked with a concerned expression.

"The other day we were interrupted by Itachi, right?" Naruto began, leaning towards the Uchiha as he spoke, his voice barely a whisper. "Well, there's no one around here for miles. So… I say we finish where we left off."

"Are you crazy? Out here in the middle of nowhere?"

"Not out here! Down there," Naruto responded, indicating the lake with a bob of his head. "Come on – I won't take 'no' for an answer!"

With that, Naruto rose from the tree stump and immediately removed his orange jacket, tossing it towards a nearby bush casually. Within seconds, he had removed his shoes, socks, and shirt as well, and began to rush towards the lake excitedly. Sasuke simply shook his head and followed after the blond, calling after him as he ran.

"Naruto! Wait up!"

The vulpine boy completely ignored his boyfriend's call, opting instead to drop his black pants and hop out of them awkwardly, all while maintaining his forward momentum. Soon, his sky blue boxers were kicked off as well, leaving Naruto completely naked as he rushed into the lake, instantly breaking the still waters with excessive splashing.

_I swear this kid's going to get me killed…_

Sasuke was soon following just a few yards behind his boyfriend, struggling to remove his clothes in the process. His navy jacket had been easy enough to remove – same with his black t-shirt – but he found the pants to be another issue altogether. Without thinking, he dropped them mid stride, causing them to bunch up around his ankles. Since he hadn't removed his shoes, this sent Sasuke tumbling down the hill unglamorously – much to Naruto's delight.

"Good move, Sasuke!" the blond shouted from the water, cupping his hands around his mouth for increased volume.

"Very funny, Naruto," Sasuke muttered as he sat on the grass, removing his shoes and socks before finally shedding his pants.

It was just a short distance more to the lake itself, so Sasuke decided simply to walk, removing some of the grass from his bare shoulders as he moved. When he finally got near to the water's edge, he looked around cautiously with both hands on the waistband of his black boxers. Once he was sure the coast was clear, he dropped them to his feet and kicked them towards a nearby boulder before finally darting into the water. Within a few seconds, he had dived beneath the surface – a move he instantly regretted as he reemerged gasping for breath.

"Geez! It's fucking freezing!" the Uchiha shouted, rubbing his arms vigorously as Naruto looked on in amusement.

"Oh, poor Sasuke – is it too cold for you?" the blond asked tauntingly before playfully splashing the other teen. "Come on! It's the middle of October, what did you expect?"

"L-like you have any r-right to talk," Sasuke retorted, his teeth starting to chatter as he struggled to keep warm. "Y-your head isn't even w-wet."

"So what?" The point is you're freezing your ass off while I'm perfectly comfortable," Naruto responded with a content smirk.

"We'll see about that!"

With a sinister look in his eye, Sasuke dove beneath the surface, effectively vanishing from sight in the dark night. Naruto, seeing exactly what the raven-haired teen was planning, panicked and tried to flee, kicking furiously as he swam for shore. Underwater, though, Sasuke had a perfect view of Naruto's thrashing legs, which he honed in on with predatory intent. As bubbles gradually escaped from his lips and drifted upwards, Sasuke grew ever nearer to his boyfriend's flailing feet, until he could feel them speeding past his nose. Just when it seemed as if he'd be kicked in the face at any moment, the Uchiha lashed out at his prey, seizing Naruto's foot with both hands. Then, with a single thrust, Sasuke yanked the blond underwater in a fog of bubbles and swinging limbs. When the couple finally emerged from the frigid depths, it was Naruto instead who was gasping for breath, while Sasuke laughed triumphantly.

"What's the matter, Naruto? Too cold for you? Oh, poor baby…"

"All right, all right – very funny," Naruto muttered, his teeth chattering as well. "Truce?"

"Truce," Sasuke replied with a smile. "But now we're both screwed. I don't want to get hypothermia out here."

"Oh, it's not _that_ cold," the vulpine boy said with a roll of his eyes. "Besides, I can think of at least one way to stay warm."

"I'm not letting you pee in the lake, if that's what you're thinking," the Uchiha interrupted, his eyes narrowing hesitantly.

"No, stupid! I was thinking something more… intimate," Naruto said softly as he gently swam over to his boyfriend. "Nothing like body contact to keep the heat in, right?"

With their feet just barely touching the ground, Sasuke and Naruto found themselves wrapped in a tight embrace, the moonlight glistening on their wet skin as they kissed. Thought they were both freezing in the water, their lips beginning to turn blue, both teens found themselves suddenly warm and satisfied by the other's presence. And, of course, their faces were positively burning with delight.

Sasuke could felt Naruto's arms entangling around his body, with one draped over his shoulder while the other clung tightly to his waist. The Uchiha himself wrapped both hands around Naruto's back, with one moving upwards towards the blond's neck, the other traveling further south, until it was resting on his butt. All the while, both teens closed their eyes and focused on their mouths, savoring the other's flavors as their tongues met.

After about a minute of this, Naruto pulled back out of the kiss, gently sucking on Sasuke's lip before disconnecting entirely. Without a word, the blond moved on to his boyfriend's neck, resting his head on Sasuke's shoulder as he kissed the new area tenderly. Sasuke followed suit, moving his own head to the side so he could suckle the skin just beneath Naruto's jaw. From there, he moved down until his lips found Naruto's once again, and their kiss resumed with renewed vigor.

As their lips went to work once again, Sasuke decided to do some more exploring with his hands. While his topmost hand planted itself on the back of Naruto's neck, brushing against its short, fuzzy hair, his other hand squeezed the blond's butt. This caused Naruto to inhale sharply, but he never removed his lips for a moment, but only responded in kind, sliding his own hand along Sasuke's butt before tightening his grip. Sasuke could feel Naruto's lips curl into a slight smile.

_So… he likes that, huh?_

"How are you holding up, Sasuke?" the blond asked, pulling back ever so slightly from their kiss.

"Good," the Uchiha moaned in response, cracking an eye open as he spoke. "You?"

Naruto nodded, his breathing noticeably heavier from their activity. "Good."

Encouraged, Sasuke pulled the blond back into another impassioned kiss. This time, however, he brought Naruto closer at the waist as well, so that their whole bodies were pressed up against each other. It was then that Sasuke felt a distinct poke down below, making his eyes snap open in surprise.

Very _good, apparently…_

Again, Sasuke opted to remain silent, resisting every urge to make some sarcastic response at Naruto's expense. Instead, he simply continued his kiss, moving his upper hand away from the blond's neck and sliding steadily down his back all the while. Soon, it joined Sasuke's other hand at Naruto's butt – still, its journey was not complete. With a naughty smile, the Uchiha shifted his hand from Naruto's backside to the front, where it arrived at its protruding destination.

"Wait, Sasuke!" Naruto exclaimed, abruptly breaking out of the kiss.

"What is it?" the raven-haired teen asked, sounding mildly annoyed by this interruption.

"Umm… are you hard, too?"

Sasuke blushed and glanced to the side. "Well… yeah…"

"So… can we?"

"What?"

"Just… move your legs up here…"

"Like this?"

"No, wrap them around my legs more."

"So… this?"

"Yes! Perfect!"

Sasuke was unsure of his current position, to say the least. He was, in a way, sitting on Naruto's thighs, with his legs wrapped around his boyfriend's support. This left him at eye level with Naruto, his arms resting on the blond's shoulders so that he wouldn't fall back into the water. The key aspect of this stance, though, was further south, for the two teens' crotches were effectively pressed up against each other. On the one hand, this was nice (for obvious reasons), but it left Sasuke unsure of what exactly to do.

"So… do I… move, or something?" Sasuke asked, looking back and forth between Naruto and the water.

"No, just stay where you are. I'll do the rest."

With that, Sasuke closed his eyes and rested his head on Naruto's shoulder, taking deep breaths as his boyfriend went to work. With Naruto's distinct, pleasant musk filling his nostrils, the Uchiha was already in a state of bliss, but his pleasure only grew as the blond began to gently thrust his hips back and forth. This created just the perfect amount of friction in all the right places, which in turn made Sasuke shudder briefly ecstasy.

"You like that, huh?" Naruto asked as he slid forward once again.

Sasuke nodded briefly and took another deep breath. He wasn't sure how Naruto knew just what to do in these types of situations. It was possible that he just knew because Sasuke was a guy, too – they knew exactly how to please each other because they knew how to please themselves. On the other hand, there was more to these intimate moments than sex – Naruto knew when to lead the way, and when to let Sasuke take charge. It was like they had some unspoken connection, a link that told them just what the other was thinking.

_Oh, God! That was a good spot…_

They continued like this for several minutes, with Naruto gradually speeding up his movements, until his rubbing against Sasuke was producing enough heat to completely distract them from the cold. With every increase in speed, Sasuke 's pleasure grew in kind, until he could no longer contain his ecstatic moans. It was around this point that the Uchiha felt a distinct twitch, at which point his eyes snapped open once more.

"Wait, Naruto! Stop! I'm…"

"Me too," Naruto interrupted, biting his lip in intense focus.

Their eyes closed, both teens let out a final moan, at which point Naruto's movements stopped, along with the rest of the world – or so it seemed. They were both practically panting, simply resting in each other's arms as they gradually returned to reality. When they finally opened their eyes again, they stared at each other for only a moment before bursting into laughter.

"That… was different," Sasuke said, wiping a tear from his eye as he climbed off Naruto's legs.

"Don't pretend you didn't like it," the blond replied, scratching his head awkwardly.

"I never said that. I mean… you were great and everything, it's just…" the Uchiha said, stumbling around his words as he caught his breath. "Well… it was exciting. A good kind of different, right?"

"Right," Naruto said, throwing one arm over his boyfriend's shoulder. "So… what do you say we get dressed before we both catch a cold out here?"

Hearing these words, Sasuke suddenly remembered just how cold Lake Konoha actually was that night. He again started rubbing his arms vigorously and nodded once. "Good idea – I'll race you there."

Together, they sprinted for shore, splashing wildly as they progressed. Soon, they were both on the shore, still laughing hysterically and arguing about who'd arrived first.

"I don't care what you say, my feet touched the grass first," Naruto said, pounding his bare chest proudly.

"Since when was the grass our goal? It was a race to shore, and I got to the dry sand first."

"Puh-lease - only because the waves were going out right there. I was at least a foot ahead of you then."

"Fine, we'll settle this with another race, then. First one to get dressed wins the whole thing," Sasuke concluded as another cool breeze blew by, causing him to shiver. "And make it snappy."

Naruto gave his consent, and at that the two teens scattered in search of their discarded clothing. After a few minutes, though, it became exceedingly clear that something was amiss. Sasuke stared at the large boulder by the shore in confusion – he could've sworn he'd left his boxers by there. The same went with his pants, shoes, and shirt – they were not where he'd remembered leaving them. In fact, they were nowhere to be found. His heart sank.

"Naruto? Did you move my stuff?" the Uchiha called out to his boyfriend a short distance away.

"I was gonna ask you the same thing," Naruto replied worriedly. He held up his sky blue boxers, waving them overhead like a flag. "These were all I could find."

_Shit… this was just what I needed…_

"Well that's just great – we've been robbed!" Sasuke exclaimed, slumping down on the boulder in frustration. "It's like God hates us or something…"

Naruto hurried over to his boyfriend and sat down beside him, holding the boxers awkwardly in one hand. "Look, it's not the end of the world. There was that rest area by the bus stop. We can go there and call for help."

Sasuke shook his head. "Naruto, we're butt naked. If we walk in there like this they'll just call the cops."

"Look, it's not like we don't have a decent excuse. Besides, I have my boxers, right? One us can wear them and go call for help, while the other hides in the bushes or something," Naruto replied, trying his best to keep a positive attitude. "Look, I'll even let you have them right now. Go on – it was my idea to go skinny-dipping in the first place, after all."

Without a word, Sasuke snatched the boxers out of Naruto's hands and slipped them on, relieved to at least have something covering himself. He then rose from the boulder and stared back at the forest. "Well, we better get going, then – the rest area might close soon."

"Right," the blond said with a forced smile. "Wouldn't want to be stranded out here, right?"

At this, the two teens started through the woods, neither one of them saying a word. Sasuke was too busy seething to even think of something worthwhile to say. Instead, his mind focused on images of him repeatedly stabbing whoever stole their clothes. Who would do something like that, anyway?

_It couldn't have been that old lady – she probably would've called the police instead. That maintenance worker wouldn't be out here to begin with… I'll bet it was those three teenagers. They probably thought it would be _hilarious_ to leave us butt naked in the woods. So help me if I see them again…_

"Sasuke? Umm… do you want to go in and ask to use the phone?" Naruto asked suddenly, bringing the Uchiha back to reality.

The raven-haired teen looked up to find them standing just on the edge of the woods, with the rest area standing just a few yards away. "I thought you were going to? It was your idea, after all – you said so yourself."

Naruto scratched his cheek and blushed. "R-right… well, can I have my boxers back, then?"

Still fuming at the thought of the three teenage thieves, Sasuke turned to his boyfriend and glared. "Are you kidding? I'm not waiting out here butt naked for you to come back. You got us into this mess, you can get us out of it."

Naruto was clearly taken aback at this, but bit his lip and nodded. "Y-you're right. Just wait here… I'll be back."

With that, the blond about-faced and started for the rest area, both hands covering his groin. As he approached the windowed doors, he took a deep breath and pushed the door open with one hand. Even from his spot by the woods, Sasuke could hear a roar of laughter as Naruto stepped inside the building, which faded once more as the door swung shut.

_What the hell am I doing? It's not his fault those jackasses decided to steal our clothes… I'm just taking it out on him because I can. If I keep this up, I'll only end up pushing him away…_

Sasuke knew there was only one thing he could do. He emerged from the woods and rushed over to the rest area, stopping beside the door so he could peek inside. There, he clearly saw Naruto's naked backside as he talked with a skeptical man behind the front desk. To the side, the Uchiha could see the three teens that had joined them on the bus, who were gleefully recording the whole ordeal on their cell phones. From his position, Sasuke could just make out what appeared to be the leg of an orange pair of pants sticking out from one of their backpacks.

_Assholes…_

Hesitating only a moment, Sasuke found himself placing both hands on the waistband of Naruto's boxers and thrusting them to the ground, leaving him as naked as his boyfriend. Kicking them to the side, the Uchiha placed a hand over his goods and entered the rest area, his face already burning with humiliation.

"Hey, look! It's Thing 1 and Thing 2!"

"More like Little Thing, am I right?"

Sasuke resisted the urge to run over and gouge the eyes out of the three catcalling teens, and instead marched up beside his boyfriend, placing on hand on the front desk. The man behind the desk shot Sasuke a dirty look before turning his attention back to Naruto.

"I take it this was the friend you were talking about?"

Naruto glanced at Sasuke and nodded. "Y-yeah. See, we decided to go for a dip, and when we came out our clothes were gone."

"Uh-huh – and may I ask why you thought it would be okay to go skinny-dipping in our park here? You realize this is a public area – you can't just do whatever you want," the man muttered, glaring down at the two teens authoritatively.

"It was a spur of the moment decision," Sasuke interrupted. "To be honest, we only came here to walk around, but my friend here thought it would be a good idea to go for a dip. We didn't want to walk around in wet clothes all night, so we decided to swim naked."

"And now you have nothing to wear at all," the man concluded, rubbing his stubble in thought. "Well, I guess the two of you have suffered enough. Just make sure to bring a suit the next time you come by here, all right?"

Just as the man leaned over to pick up the phone, the doors behind them creaked open, causing Naruto and Sasuke to spin around in surprise. There, in full uniform, were two police officers, whose eyes instantly narrowed at the sight of the two naked teens.

"Well, well – what do we have here?" one officer responded, his boots clacking against the tile as he stepped forward.

"Oh, it's all right, officers. Everything's under control here – these two just had a bit of misfortune when they went swimming. You understand," the man behind the desk responded with a wave of his hand.

"Is that so?" the other officer asked as he reached into his back pocket. Moments later, he pulled forth a sky-blue pair of boxers. Sasuke's heart sank. "Can you explain why I found these lying right outside, then?"

Naruto and Sasuke exchanged a worried glance, but remained silent. The officer was persistent, however, and continued forward, dangling the underwear on his finger. "Well, boys? What's the story? Is this some kind of fraternity stunt? Or maybe this is just how you two get your kicks."

"No, no! We swear – we were robbed!" Naruto exclaimed, inadvertently raising both hands pleadingly as he backed up against the desk. With the blond's entire front now exposed, however, the officers seemed all the more intent on taking them both in. While the one still held the boxers, the other reached to his belt and pulled forth a set of handcuffs.

"Perhaps you two would like to come with us? You can explain it all on the way downtown…"

"Run!"

Sasuke's orders came so suddenly that the officers didn't quite know how to react. Rather than try to run in the opposite direction, the Uchiha dragged Naruto towards the policemen, pushing one aside as they hurried towards the door. By the time the officers had recovered, the two teens were already disappearing into the woods, jumping through the brush as they ran as fast as they could. For several minutes they could hear the policemen following behind them, and could even see the occasional glare of their flashlights. Soon, these sounds faded, and the wail of sirens told the young couple that the pursuit in the woods had been called off.

"Why did they stop, do you think?" Naruto asked, pushing aside a bush as he stepped through the forest.

"It's a Friday night in Konoha – they have more important things to do with their time than chase down some naked kids. They probably got a call about some other crime in progress," Sasuke said, his heart still pounding as dead leaves crunched under his bare feet.

"So… now what do we do?" the blond asked after a while, pausing by an oak tree to catch his breath. "No one knows we're out here, and it'll take us hours to get back home like this…"

"We'll have to hitchhike," the Uchiha responded simply, pushing aside a low-hanging branch as he spoke. To his relief, he could see the headlights of passing cars not far in the distance. "The highway's just over there. If we're lucky, someone will give us a lift back into town."

"What if the police see us?"

Sasuke shrugged his shoulders. "Well, we can always hide in the woods again. We'll at least have a head start on them. I really don't think we have any other choice, though."

Naruto sighed and pushed himself away from the tree. "All right, then. Lead the way."

Sasuke nodded and stepped out of the woods, shivering as the cool air hit his bare skin once more. Unlike before, though, he wasn't bitter towards Naruto, the three teens, or the police – he was only angry with himself for being so stubborn. If he had just gone and asked to use the phone himself, or even just gave Naruto the boxers back, neither of them would be in this mess. More importantly, he knew he'd hurt Naruto, even if the blond did a good job of hiding it.

In just a few minutes, the two teens found themselves walking alongside the nearly deserted highway, with one hand covering their crotches as they stuck out their thumbs with the other. With just about every car that passed by, there was a series of honks and catcalls, but no one was willing to stop and pick up the two naked teenagers. After a few minutes of this, Sasuke decided to break the tension with an apology.

"Naruto… I'm sorry about before. I didn't mean to snap at you like that," the Uchiha said, ignoring the whistles emanating from another passing vehicle.

"Well, it was my fault. It's not like you were lying or anything," Naruto responded meekly. "I'm just sorry I got us into this mess to begin with."

"You have nothing to apologize for! It's those three teenagers back at the rest area who did it, after all. We were just trying to have some fun, right?" Sasuke asked with a slight smile. "And it was fun, by the way. I don't know how you got so good at… well, that kind of thing."

"Please – I was terrible. I felt like my legs were going to give out holding you up like that. Maybe I should hit the gym more…"

"If that's terrible for you, then I can't wait to see you at the top of your game."

Another honk briefly brought Sasuke's attention back to the road, where a red compact was speeding past. Much to the raven-haired teen's surprise, the brake lights came on moments later, followed by the car pulling over to the side of the road.

"Looks like we're in luck. Come on, Naruto!"

Both teens ran along the road for close to a minute, awkwardly covering their crotches as they approached the car. When they came up to the passenger window, however, they were both dismayed at the face awaiting them.

"Sh-Shikamaru?"

"Hey, Sasuke. Naruto," the Nara replied, nodding politely to both teens while wearing a smirk. "Need a lift?"

"Please," Naruto said, shivering as another breeze blew by.

"I don't know… what do you think, Temari?" Shikamaru asked, glancing over to the aforementioned driver.

"Oh, don't be an ass, Shika. Hop in, guys."

With a gracious nod, the naked teens clambered into the back seat of the car, where they buckled up and sighed with relief. Shikamaru looked back over his shoulder at the duo, raising an eyebrow inquisitively. "So, may I ask what the two of you were doing walking naked down the side of the highway?"

"It's a long story," Sasuke said, shaking his head in exhaustion.

"All right – I won't ask about it now. But don't think you're off the hook just yet," the Nara responded before turning his attention back up front. Moments later, he tossed a blanket back over the seat, which feel neatly into Sasuke's lap. "Here, use this to warm yourselves up. It'll probably take us another twenty minutes to get back to Konoha."

Naruto and Sasuke cuddle up beneath the blanket, grateful to finally have something to cover up with. Though they both knew they'd be harassed about this later on, for the moment they were happy just to be on their way home. After twenty minutes of warming up in the back seat, they finally arrived outside their dorm in Konoha, where they stepped out of the car with the blanket wrapped around their waists.

"Thanks for the ride, you two!" Naruto shouted as the car drove away before he and Sasuke scrambled up the stairs to his apartment.

They were relieved to find that Kiba had left the door unlocked, and thus hurried into the building and over to Naruto's room, where the blond quickly found them some clothes to wear. Finally dressed, they walked out into the living room and joined Kiba on the couch. Though the Inuzuka clearly had questions of his own regarding Naruto and Sasuke's bizarre entrance, he opted not to say anything, and instead the three of them watched the second half of _Van Wilder_ in peace.

Little did they know that this peace would be short-lived, for just on the other end of Konoha, Shikamaru and Temari were discovering that Gaara had gone missing.

---

Well, there you have it! Poor Naruto and Sasuke - will they ever catch a break? And what about Gaara? What's happened to him since his fatal encounter with his father? And what about Lee? All will be revealed in the next chapter of _For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him._ And, as always, don't forget to review!


	31. Bridge Over Troubled Water

Hello, dear readers. I bring you chapter 31 of _For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him! _This chapter settles the latest problem with Gaara - well, for the most part. So, I hope you enjoy! Also, as usual, thank you for reading and reviewing. Now, on with the chapter!

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31. Bridge Over Troubled Water

When Shikamaru arrived at the Subakuno residence with Temari, he instantly felt a surge of panic. Even as they turned onto the street, it was clear something was wrong – there were red and blue lights flashing from numerous police cars on the scene, and an ambulance parked on the side of the road. The area surrounding the house was completely blocked off by caution tape and barriers, and policemen were all hurrying about the yard in an animated manner.

_What the hell's going on here?_

"Temari, stop the car," Shikamaru said, indicating a spot on the side of the road just at the start of the street.

"R-right," the blonde replied, her face pale from the troubling sight. She mechanically pulled over to the side and put the car in park before hopping out of the vehicle.

Together, Shikamaru and Temari rushed over to the barricade, where they were immediately stopped by an officer with long, white hair. "Sorry, you two. Can't let you through here – this is a crime scene."

"Crime scene? Please, tell me what happened!" Temari pleaded, practically hyperventilating as she tried to see through the sea of police officers.

"That's confidential information. Now, if you need to get through, there's a detour going through some of the side streets here. The signs should lead the way…"

"No, you don't understand, Officer… Jiraiya," Shikamaru interrupted, glancing at the man's nametag. "She lives here – Temari Subakuno. Look it up, if you have to."

"I see," Jiraiya replied before removing his hat somberly. "Well, I'm afraid I have some bad news. It seems your father was murdered."

Temari's eyes went wide. She struggled to speak. "Y-you're lying… it can't be…"

"We're not sure of the exact cause of death at the moment, but it appears he went quickly, if that's any consolation. I'm very sorry for your loss," Jiraiya continued, trying his best to maintain eye contact with the traumatized girl.

Shikamaru threw an arm over Temari's shoulder and pulled her close, allowing her to cry into his shirt as he talked with the officer. "Do you have any idea who the bastard is that did this?"

"Actually, we do. There was a witness – a boy named Rock Lee. He saw the whole thing apparently."

"And? Who is it? Did you find him? Are you looking for him?"

"I have officer's scouring the city as we speak – we _will_ find him – though I'm honestly not sure what we'll do when we find him," Jiraiya responded, scratching his neck uncomfortably.

"What are you talking about? He's a murderer! Lock him up for the rest of his life, give him the chair, I don't care!"

"The suspect is Gaara Subakuno," Jiraiya said flatly, causing Shikamaru to lapse into an immediate silence. "From what we can tell, he and Mr. Subakuno got into a fight, and Gaara came out on top. Lee's understandably shocked by the whole ordeal, so he can't give us all the exact details at the moment. All we know is Gaara took off running shortly afterward, heading south."

Shikamaru didn't know what to say. As Temari continued bawling, he tried his best to console her, though he knew it was impossible. What could he possibly say after hearing such news to make things right? There was nothing – her life had just been shattered, and no words could possibly glue it back together.

_Gaara… killed his dad? How…?_

"Is Lee still here?" Shikamaru asked abruptly, looking at Jiraiya with renewed intensity.

"He's talking to one of our men on the front porch there. I can't let you talk with him, though – he's been through enough as it is."

_Damn… I was hoping I could at least get some more information out of him… What if Gaara's snapped? I mean, if it was an accident and he was innocent, why would Gaara run? It doesn't make any sense… he must know he's guilty, and so he's trying to hide. But what if he's not? What if he's planning to go on a rampage, to go down in a blaze of glory?_ _If that's the case, he'll probably go after the last few people on his list… starting with…_

Shikamaru felt his blood run cold. There was only one possible answer: Sasuke. If Gaara had truly snapped, he would want to take down the one guy who ever eluded him, the guy he hated most, and his rival in love. Even if he was wrong, Shikamaru knew he couldn't just sit there and hope for the best – not when there was a chance Sasuke was in danger.

_But I can't just leave Temari like this! After what she's just gone through – finding out that her father's been murdered, and by her brother no less! Should I just call Sasuke?_

Keeping one arm wrapped around Temari, the Nara patted his pocket, only to find that his cell wasn't there. He cursed his bad luck.

_Of course – I _would_ leave it at home, wouldn't I? And it's not like I bothered to memorize Sasuke's number, either… that would've been too troublesome…_

"Temari! Thank God you're okay!"

Shikamaru looked up in surprise while the blonde in question lifted her head to find Kankuro rushing towards them, his purple performance makeup smeared from his tears. Without a word, Shikamaru backed up while the two siblings embraced, sharing both their sorrow at their loss, and their relief at each other's safety.

"I came home as soon as I found out, but when I saw you weren't here, I… I didn't know what to think," Kankuro whispered, wiping his tears on his sleeve.

"It's okay, we're safe now, right?" Temari sighed, pressing her face into her brother's chest. "The worst is over…"

_I really hope that's the case, Temari_. _Really, I do_.

Standing off to the side, Shikamaru watched the sibling reunion with a bittersweet feeling. On the one hand, both Temari and Kankuro had clearly been through an ordeal, but they at least had the comfort of each other's company for now.

"I'm sorry, kid, but are you family?" Jiraiya asked suddenly, having replaced his hat.

"Who, me? No, I'm just… a friend, I guess," Shikamaru responded, having completely forgotten about the white-haired man's presence.

"Well, I'm going to have to ask you to run on home, then. You understand, I'm sure."

Shikamaru stared at Jiraiya for a moment, considering protesting this order, before glancing back at his girlfriend. It was then that he realized Temari had all but forgotten him for the time being. After the tragedy the Subakunos had just experienced, all they really needed was each other – to have at least some semblance of a family amidst all the chaos.

_There's no place for me here – I'm needed elsewhere._

"Of course. Can I just have a moment to say goodbye?"

"Make it quick," Jiraiya replied with a nod before turning his attention back to his scrambling police force.

Shikamaru didn't need to be told twice. He quickly took his leave of the officer and hurried over to Temari, leaning over her shoulder to whisper into her ear. "Temari… I'm sorry to ask you this, but can I borrow your car for a bit? I promise to bring it back, it's just… I don't feel comfortable walking home after all this."

Apparently this was a believable excuse for Temari, who simply gave a slow nod, her head rubbing against Kankuro's chest as she reached into her purse. Moments later, she plopped the keys into Shikamaru's hands, who thanked the blonde graciously. Just as he turned to leave, however, Temari's soft voice called out to him.

"Shika… be careful, okay?"

The Nara froze momentarily, staring at his girlfriend in shock. Had she seen right through his lie? Who was he kidding, of course she had! Temari could read Shikamaru like a book by this point – she must've known exactly what he was planning. At the same time, though, she had given him her keys, so did that mean he had her blessing? Feeling this was the case, Shikamaru pounded a fist against his chest with a look of sincerity. "Promise."

With that, the teen took off running towards the car, which he clambered into as quickly as possible. Though his hands were shaking slightly, causing him to fumble briefly with the keys, Shikamaru soon had the car up and running. It was only then that he realized Temari drove a stick shift.

_Well, isn't this special? Okay… so I have to step on the clutch and ease up on the gas…_

Soon, the cherry red compact was rolling steadily backward. Trying his best to keep his composure, Shikamaru guided the car back into a driveway, where he shifted into first and rolled forward. After some more fiddling around with the new controls, the Nara was on the road with only his destination in mind: Naruto's apartment.

_Hold on, Sasuke… I'm coming!_

As determined as Shikamaru was to save his friend from a potential threat, however, he did feel somewhat uncertain as he cruised down the road. Where were they going to go once he got there? What if Gaara was already there? What if he was too late?

_No! This isn't the time to have those kinds of thoughts, Shikamaru! Just be rational – we'll cross that bridge when we get there. After all, if Gaara really _is_ looking for Sasuke, he would've checked the Uchiha mansion first. That at least gives us some time…_

By this point, it had started to rain, forcing Shikamaru to turn on the windshield wipers as he turned the corner onto Naruto's street. After driving a short distance, he sped into the parking lot, where he found a spot and rushed out of the vehicle, inadvertently leaving the lights on in the process.

_Screw it! If the battery dies, I'll pay Temari back…_

After darting up the stairs, Shikamaru ran up to Naruto's apartment, where he began to pound on the door frantically. With every passing second the Nara spent in the rain, waiting for the door to swing open, he felt his heart pound ever harder, until he felt it might explode.

_Hurry up… just answer the damn door, Naruto! Come on! I know you're here! Just… just be okay…_

There was a distinct creak, which seemed to make the world around Shikamaru freeze completely. The door was opening – someone was there. But who was it? Naruto? Sasuke? Gaara?

"Hey, Shikamaru! What's up?" a brown-haired teen wearing a hoodie asked with a grin, cradling a small white dog in his arm.

"Kiba! Are Naruto and Sasuke still here?" the Nara asked, seizing Kiba's collar as he forced his way inside.

"Whoa, man – calm down. We were just watching the rest of _Van Wilder_ – they're just getting to the part where that one guy takes the laxative…"

"They're here, then? Where?"

"Over here, Shikamaru," came Sasuke's distinct drone from the couch, accompanied by a hand waving from over the cushion. "Can you keep it down? The movie's getting almost tolerable – wait, no, Tara Reid's onscreen again. I lied."

"Sasuke! You're okay!" Shikamaru exclaimed, practically beaming as he rushed into the living room.

"Of course, why wouldn't I be?" the Uchiha replied, glancing up at his friend skeptically. He only stared at the Nara for a few seconds before noting his paler complexion and his heavy breathing, at which point he jumped to the inevitable conclusion. "What's wrong? Something happened, didn't it?"

"What're you talking about, Sasuke? He probably wanted to make sure we didn't catch pneumonia out there, earlier. Right, Shikamaru?" Naruto interrupted, trying to alleviate his boyfriend's suspicions.

"No, he's right, Naruto. We have to get you two out of here right away – you too, Kiba," Shikamaru said, snatching up the remote to shut off the television.

"Hey! We were watching that…"

Sasuke ignored the blond's pouting and turned to look at his friend. "Fine, we'll come with you – but I'm not going anywhere until you tell me what's going on."

Knowing it was pointless to argue with the Uchiha, Shikamaru sighed spilled the beans. "It's Gaara. I don't know the details exactly, but when Temari and I got back to her place there were police cars everywhere. Apparently Gaara killed his dad."

"You serious?" Kiba asked, only now dropping his casual smirk as the gravity of the situation sunk in.

Shikamaru nodded solemnly before continuing. "Lee was there – I didn't get to talk to him myself – but apparently he saw the whole thing. It really shook him up, I guess."

"And what about Gaara? Where's he?" Naruto chimed in, resting his head on the back of the couch as he stared up at the Nara.

"We don't know – from what I've heard, he took off running once Mr. Subakuno was dead. They're searching for him right now, but he could be anywhere. That's why we have to get you out of here."

"But he might come looking for us here! We have to be here to help him if that happens, right?" Naruto asked indignantly. He looked from face to face for a moment, waiting for one of his friends to back him up. No one did. "Guys?"

Shikamaru shook his head, placing a hand on his forehead in frustration. Why did this have to be so hard? "Naruto, that's exactly why you can't be here. Don't you see? Gaara's unstable – he just killed his dad, for chrissake! Don't you think he _just might_ try to hurt us if we get in his way?"

"But… we're his friends…"

"Naruto! Think about this for a minute," Sasuke said in as calm a voice as possible. Despite his good act, though, Shikamaru could see the slight trembling in the Uchiha's hands – he knew exactly what was at stake here. "If Gaara knocks on that door, he's going to want one of two things: to be hidden, or to take out a few more of his enemies. We can't hide him – you know we'd have to call the police, and who knows what that might make him do. This can only end badly for us unless we get out of here as quickly as possible."

"What do you mean take out more of his enemies?" Naruto said, tilting his head to the side quizzically.

Shikamaru placed a hand on the blond's shoulder and crouched down, so he was staring the other teen straight in the eye. "Naruto – remember that fight you and Gaara had? Don't you think he might want to finish what he started?"

Naruto sat in stunned silence as the implication sunk in. He chanced glance to his left, where he found Sasuke staring straight ahead and the blank television screen, his hands shaking more noticeably now. Even seeing his boyfriend's palpable fear, though, Naruto was not about to give up on Gaara. "But… Gaara wouldn't _do_ that."

"He wouldn't kill Sasuke, but he'd kill his own father?" Kiba asked, looking almost disgusted by Naruto's though process. "Naruto, you're not making any sense!"

"We don't know what happened, guys! For all we know, Mr. Subakuno's death was an accident!"

"But why would he run, Naruto? If he's innocent, why not tell the police what happened himself? He even had Lee as a witness!" Shikamaru challenged, trying to point out the flaws in the blond's logic.

"I wouldn't expect you to understand… you don't know what it's like to see something like that, but I do. When my dad died right in front of me, I wanted nothing more than to get as far away from him as possible – it wasn't even because I was afraid. I'd been an inch away from death, but I that was the furthest thing from my mind… I just wanted to get away. Like, maybe if I ran fast enough, I'd wake up and everything would be back to the way things were," Naruto said gravely, staring down at the couch cushion as he spoke. "Look, I'm saying I know what Gaara's thinking, but he _is_ our friend. I think we should give him the benefit of the doubt."

"What do you think he'd do, then?" Sasuke asked after an extended moment of silence. "I mean, if he's not coming here or anything, then where is he heading?"

Naruto considered this for a moment, closing his eyes tight in thought. "Well… if I know Gaara, he wouldn't be out for blood after something like this. I mean, he always felt responsible for his mother's death – I'm guessing the burden of both of his parents' deaths is probably crushing him."

"So… he's just running?" Kiba offered uncertainly, with Akamaru concurring with a bark.

"No, no – he's not trying to hide or anything. I think he's trying to escape from… himself, I guess," Naruto said, scratching his head confusedly. "I mean, everything about his home probably reminds him of his family – the family he feels responsible for ruining. He must feel like… a monster."

The blond's eyes widened. Clearly he'd been struck with a realization, though Shikamaru wasn't sure whether it was good or bad. "What is it, Naruto? Do you know where he is?"

Naruto shook his head. "No – but I think I know what he's going to do."

"Well, spill it already!" Kiba urged his roommate curtly.

"I remember how I felt when all the kids at the orphanage kept calling _me_ a monster – it was horrible, like no one in the world wanted me. At the same time, though, I didn't actually feel like I'd done anything wrong. I was sad because everyone seemed to hate me, but mostly I was just confused. Like, what had I done wrong, you know? But then Iruka came, and everything was fine. But… I think, if I actually _did_ hurt someone else, so that I _really_ felt like a monster… I wouldn't have been able to live with myself."

"You don't mean…" Sasuke asked, turning towards his boyfriend in shock.

"I'm not sure, of course, but that might be what he's thinking – that he'll only end up hurting the people he cares about, so it's better just to end it all."

Kiba pushed himself away from the wall and set Akamaru on the floor before pounding his fist into an open palm. "All right! I've heard enough! Shikamaru, did they say which direction Gaara was heading in?"

"Y-yeah, they said he was heading south," the Nara replied, surprised at the Inuzuka's initiative.

"Perfect! They probably have a separate force patrolling the southern part of the city, then. But if Gaara's going to get there, he's gonna have to cross the Konoha Bridge first, right?" Kiba continued, placing a hand on both Shikamaru and Naruto's shoulders.

"I suppose so…" Shikamaru responded, still feeling uncertain about this whole situation.

"Well, then, all we have to do is drive down there and wait. If we're lucky, Gaara will show up, and we can talk some sense into him before he does anything drastic. What do you think guys?"

"Sounds good to me," Naruto said with a look of determination.

"I don't know… what do you think, Sasuke? You're the one most affected by this, after all," Shikamaru said, turning to the Uchiha for a response.

Sasuke looked back and forth between the trio for a moment before gazing at Naruto. Almost immediately, he melted at the blond's pleading eyes and sighed. "All right – let's do this."

With a sigh, Shikamaru headed towards the door while waving for his friends to follow after him. "I swear, sometimes you guys can be such a pain in the ass…"

It didn't take long for Naruto, Sasuke and Kiba to get ready, and soon all four teens were rushing out into the rain to Temari's car. There, Shikamaru was glad to see the battery hadn't died after the lights were left on as he clambered into the front seat. Meanwhile, Kiba grabbed the front seat while Naruto and Sasuke sat in the back.

"Just a warning you guys – I'm still not quite sure how to drive this thing, so hold on," Shikamaru muttered as he strove to get the car started. Once the engine was up and running, though, he sat back with a look of satisfaction and threw the vehicle into drive.

Even though the Konoha Bridge was only ten minutes away from their apartment, even in bad traffic, to Shikamaru it felt like the longest drive of his life. The whole time he was trying to understand Naruto's point of view, while simultaneously struggling to ignore his previous conclusions. He could certainly understand why Gaara might be a bit distraught about killing his father – especially if it was an accident, or if he was just defending himself – but at the same time he'd heard the rumors of what Gaara had done back in Suna. Assuming those were true, this wasn't the first time the redhead had killed someone, and if he'd done it before, then he could do it again.

At least, that's what Shikamaru thought. Glancing back in the rearview mirror, though, the Nara could see Naruto's eyes staring right back at him, fierce in their resolve, but soft with concern.

_How can he be so sure that Gaara hasn't snapped? It's not even a possibility in his mind. He's not concerned at all about what Gaara might do to someone else – only what he might end up doing to himself. It's the most insane thing I've ever heard… yet I believe him._

That was what bothered Shikamaru the most. As much as he tried to analyze the situation logically, he never once concluded that they should go out and search for Gaara. To him, the only real option was to hide somewhere safe and wait for the police to find him. If he was innocent, the truth would set Gaara free, and if he was guilty, he'd be punished accordingly, and no one would be put in danger. Still, there Shikamaru was, racing downtown in Temari's car on the off chance that they might find Gaara and save him from himself. It was illogical, it was even crazy, but somehow, Shikamaru knew it was the right thing to do.

_I guess Naruto's always had that gift, though – the power to change people and make them do thing's they'd never even consider on their own. Just look at Sasuke! I don't know what they were doing earlier tonight, but I'm positive Sasuke never would've been out by Lake Konoha in his birthday suit before he met Naruto. I just hope Naruto can work his magic on Gaara a second time…_

It was around this point in Shikamaru's thought process that they arrived at the Konoha Bridge, which was packed with cars. Thinking quickly, the Nara turned the corner and pulled into a nearby parking lot outside a pizzeria. Without a word, the four teens rushed out of the car and started towards the bridge.

"All right, guys! Keep an eye out for him, okay? Naruto and Kiba – you take the right side. Sasuke and I will take the left!" Shikamaru called out over the roar of the pouring rain.

They all nodded before darting to their designated positions. Soon, Shikamaru and Sasuke had reached the center of the bridge, where they stood side by side, watching out for any sign of the fugitive redhead. No sooner had they stopped, however, than they heard Naruto's voice cry out, followed by a clap of thunder.

"GAARA!"

Shikamaru turned towards the blond in surprise, only to see him pointing up. He followed Naruto's finger until he reached the top of the central tower, where he saw a faint figure standing on the edge, staring out at the sea. His heart sank.

_My God… he was right! He's gonna jump!_

"Sasuke!"

"I see him," the Uchiha said immediately, having already started across the stopped traffic to the sound of blaring horns.

Shikamaru followed closely after his friend, and soon they rejoined Naruto and Kiba, who were both trying desperately to get Gaara's attention. No matter how much they screamed the redhead's name, however, the teen wouldn't budge, but continued to stare out at the river below like a statue.

"I'm going up there," Naruto said suddenly, turning to his friends as if challenging them to stop him. "If he's not going to listen to us, then I'm going to make him."

"Naruto! You can't do that! It's too dangerous! Just look at how it's raining – it'll be too slippery, not to mention the wind," Sasuke exclaimed, rushing between his boyfriend and the tower.

"Sasuke, I _have_ to do something. If Gaara dies… I don't know what I'll do…"

"And how do you think I'll feel if _you_ die, huh?" the Uchiha replied, looking positively terrified. "Didn't you ever consider that, Naruto?"

The blond was stunned. Clearly torn by the dilemma, Naruto finally embraced his boyfriend tightly, saying, "Don't worry. As long as you're alive, I'll never leave you. Ever."

"How can you say that? Don't be stupid!" Sasuke replied, backing away from his boyfriend in anger.

"Sasuke, _look at me_," Naruto said calmly, grabbing the Uchiha's hand firmly. At first the raven-haired teen resisted, but soon he met Naruto's eyes and looked almost entranced. "I _promise_ – I'll never let you be alone again."

There was a definite pause, during which Shikamaru simply watched the couple in awe. He had to agree with Sasuke – it was an incredibly stupid promise to make. There was absolutely no way Naruto could ever keep it, yet when Shikamaru observed the intensity in the blond's eyes, he knew Naruto meant it. Somehow, someway, Shikamaru felt Naruto was telling the truth.

_Damn it… there he goes again with that gift of his…_

Finally, Sasuke nodded and bit his lip. "All right… just come back in one piece, okay?"

"Sure thing," Naruto responded, flashing a thumbs-up before starting up the rungs running along the side of the tower.

As Shikamaru watched the blond gradually ascend, he was suddenly struck with realization. Turning to Kiba, he leaned over to speak into the dog-boy's ear. "Hey, Kiba, can I borrow your cell phone for a minute?"

Kiba looked at his friend in surprise before pulling out the phone. "Sure, go ahead."

Shikamaru flipped the phone open and hurriedly dialed Temari's number. He was only glad he'd made a point of remembering it the other day. After a few rings, he heard his grief-stricken girlfriend pick up with a sob. "H-hello?"

"Temari! It's Shikamaru – I'm at the Konoha Bridge. We've found him."

xxxxx

As Naruto carefully made his way up the ladder on the side of the bridge tower, he could feel his heart throbbing nervously in his chest. He had told Sasuke that he wouldn't die, and he meant it – now he just had to convince himself of it. The wind was blowing hard, picking up mist and causing ever run to become cold and slippery. His hands were already numb, and he was only halfway up the tower – one wrong move and he'd fall. Gravity would do the rest.

Despite this anxiety, though, Naruto moved forward, his hands moving almost mechanically as he climbed the ladder. Even if he was putting himself in danger, it was worth it if he could keep Gaara from doing the unthinkable. He didn't know what had happened between the redhead and his father, but in his mind it didn't matter. Letting Gaara kill himself would solve nothing – if Gaara lived, though, he could at least make up for what he did. Suicide was not the answer.

_I think he knows that, too. If he really wanted to end it all, he would have done it already. No, he's hesitating because there's that voice in the back of his head telling him to stop. Now he just needs someone to tell him that in person – another voice to confirm his suspicions._

Chancing a look back down at the bridge, Naruto could barely make out his friends gathered around the base of the tower. He gulped, but pressed onward. Soon, his hands slapped onto the metal bars at the top of the tower, where he pulled himself up.

That's where he found Gaara – or, at least, what was left of him. His eyes were practically lifeless, staring out over the water as his mind struggled with the choice that lay before him. Otherwise, the teen seemed completely numb – he was dressed only in his underwear, and his exposed skin had turned an even deeper pale. Moisture clung to his body, giving it an almost sickly sheen as the wind blew through his matted, red hair. He didn't even seem to notice Naruto, who held onto the bars of the ladder for support as he watched his suicidal friend.

"Gaara! It's me, Naruto!" the blond shouted, hoping to trigger a response in the other teen.

Slowly, Gaara's head shifted to the side, though he never made eye contact with Naruto. Instead, his eyes seemed to stare through him, like the vulpine boy was some sort of ghost. "You shouldn't be here," he said in a weak monotone.

"Neither should you!" Naruto replied, taking a tentative step towards the redhead. "You don't have to do this, Gaara!"

"What other choice is there? If you're here, then you must know what happened… I can't live with myself after that…"

Naruto shook his head. "You're wrong – I _don't_ know what happened. Nobody knows. Only _you_ can tell us what really happened, Gaara."

The redhead chuckled weakly and gazed back at the water. "You want to hear my side of the story? Fine – I killed him."

There was something unsettling about the way Gaara said that. In his current, emotionless state, his words came out so calmly. Though Naruto knew otherwise, it almost sounded as if Gaara had no remorse about what he did. "Is that all? You just decided to kill him?"

"Of course not," the redhead responded with what appeared to be a smile. "He came home early today and caught me and Lee in the act. I guess that was the last straw for him – it looked like he was already drunk. Probably lost his job today or something."

"So he attacked you?"

Gaara's lips quivered slightly as a bit of moisture appeared in the corner of his eye. "He said my mom never wanted me… that I was just a burden – no, a parasite – but that she couldn't bring herself to abort me. So he decided he was going to do what she never could."

Naruto couldn't believe his ears. Mr. Subakuno was going to kill his own son? "Gaara… you were only defending yourself, right? You can't blame yourself for that…"

"Don't tell me what I can't do!" Gaara snapped, his eyes suddenly intense as he stared at the blond with gritted teeth. "You don't understand, all right? Yes, he attacked me first – so it was only self-defense. I knew exactly what I was doing though. When he lunged at me, I saw an opportunity and pounced on it. I knew what kicking him right in the nose would do – that the force would knock the bone back into his brain, killing him instantly. Don't you see? I could've won without killing him, but I didn't – I made sure he'd never come back…"

"I'm sure it was just your instincts, Gaara – muscle memory or something like that," Naruto responded, having stepped closer to the redhead, so that he was within arm's reach.

"NO!" Gaara snapped, swatting the other teen's outstretched hand away forcefully. The shock caused Naruto to stumble back, so that he landed just shy of the tower's edge. The redhead had now moved away from his own spot by the ledge to loom over Naruto. "I killed him, Naruto – I did exactly what I intended to do. In that moment, I decided to make sure he could never hurt me again… never hurt any of us. Now it's time for me to do the same thing."

"But why? If he deserved what he got, why do all of this?" Naruto asked, eyeing the ledge warily as the rain beat down around them.

"Because I loved him!" the redhead exclaimed, turning away from his friend as tears began to fall. "Even though he was a insensitive drunk, he was still my father! And I killed him! Don't you see? If I can kill someone I love, then what's to stop me from killing Temari? Or Lee? Or… you?"

"You can't say things like that, Gaara! We're not like your dad!"

"And why not? Don't you get angry? Don't you bleed? Don't you die? If it can happen to Dad… it can happen to anyone."

"But we love you too, Gaara," Naruto protested, causing the redhead to freeze.

"W-what?"

"Just look down there, Gaara. Shikamaru, Kiba, Sasuke – they all came here to find you so we could help you. They aren't like your dad – they don't see you as a burden. You're our friend, and we care about you."

"And I've managed to hurt you, too. Or did you forget about that little fight of ours?" Gaara spat, turning his attention to the water once more.

"That's all in the past! You're not like that now! We can see that – you just need to open your eyes and see it yourself!"

As if to confirm Naruto's statement, a searchlight suddenly lit up the tower from below, causing Gaara to shield his eyes in momentary blindness. Once he had recovered, however, he gazed down at the bridge along with Naruto, where they found several police cruisers waiting. Standing outside of one of the cars were a blonde girl and a boy dressed in black, who were gathered around a megaphone.

"Gaara! It's me, Temari!"

"And Kankuro!" the black teen responded, leaning into the megaphone.

Temari yanked the megaphone back and regained control. "Gaara! Don't jump! We love you, and we need you now more than ever!"

"Yeah, bro! Come back down so we can talk this whole thing over."

Gaara collapsed onto the floor and stared down at his siblings, tears running down his cheeks. "They… they really do care about me."

"Right! Your family wants you, Gaara. They've lost enough – don't make them lose you, too," Naruto added, placing a hand on the redhead's shoulder.

This time, Gaara didn't refuse the contact, but only nodded. "All right… tell them I'll come down."

Overjoyed, Naruto stood up straight and cupped his hands around his mouth, shouting, "Okay, guys! He's not gonna jump!"

A white-haired officer took control of the megaphone and called up to the two teens. "Good! Stay right there! A cherry picker will be by to pick the two of you up shortly!"

Satisfied, Naruto sat back down on the floor with Gaara, letting the redhead rest on his shoulder as he cried himself out. By the time the cherry picker had arrived, Gaara was fast asleep, being understandably exhausted from the day's events. Along with the white-haired officer's help, Naruto loaded Gaara into the basket, and together they were lowered to the ground with their much-relieved friends.

_It'll be okay, Gaara… it'll be okay…_

* * *

Well, there you have it! Please share any thoughts you might have, and I'll have the next chapter up as soon as possible. Thanks for reading!


	32. Sailing Right Behind

I apologize in advance, dear readers. This chapter took me far longer to write than it should have - call it writers' block, I guess. Anyway, it's done now, and I hope I won't have similar problems in the future. As usual, I would like to thank you all for reading and reviewing. Now, on with the chapter!

* * *

32. Sailing Right Behind

Kakashi Hatake sat on his sofa Saturday morning, sipping a cup of coffee as he watched the morning news. The previous night had been quiet – not that there was anything wrong with that, of course. He had enjoyed simply staying at home and finishing up the latest novel from Jiraiya. Now that his book was finished, however, the silver-haired man was decidedly bored.

At the same time, though, he was tingling with anticipation. He and Iruka had decided to meet early that morning to go out and spend some time together. It wasn't anything particularly special – just a trip to the park, maybe lunch. Still, Kakashi was looking forward to seeing Iruka again. They had talked a few times since their date earlier that week – if you could even call it a date – but this was the first time they'd actually be together for an extended period of time as a couple.

And it made Kakashi as nervous as hell.

He liked Iruka – really, he did. Their brief kiss earlier that week had brought out feelings in Kakashi that he hadn't felt for some time. But, of course, that left Kakashi somewhat uneasy. He knew he would have to move on from Obito, and he told himself that time and again. No amount of logic could possibly remove that lingering hesitation – only time could heal what remained of that wound.

Suddenly, the doorbell rang, causing Kakashi to glance up from the television in surprise. He hadn't been expecting Iruka _this_ early – he wasn't even dressed yet. Deciding his pajama pants would have to do, the silver-haired teacher rose off the sofa, scratching his bare midriff as he approached the door. With a sigh, he threw open the door, only to have his doubt vanish in an instant.

"Good morning, Kakashi!" Iruka said with a bright smile. He looked momentarily concerned when he saw the other man's attire. "I'm sorry! You weren't sleeping, were you?"

Kakashi smiled, chuckling as he scratched his chin. It felt strange, talking to someone without wearing his trademark mask, but he didn't feel self-conscious about it around Iruka. "No, no – you're fine. I was just lounging around a bit. Come on in."

Stepping aside, Kakashi let the brunet inside before shutting the door behind them. They stood awkwardly in the entryway for a moment, neither one knowing quite what to say. "Umm… would you like some coffee?"

"Sure, sounds good," Iruka responded, following the other man into the living room.

"I'll grab you some real quick. Have a seat on the couch and I'll be right in," Kakashi said as he strolled into the kitchen.

It took only a moment for Kakashi to pour Iruka a cup and join him on the couch, where they proceeded to watch the news as they chatted. "So, what's the plan for today? Did you want to go out for lunch after our walk?"

"We'll play it by ear," Iruka said, sipping the coffee. He glanced up suddenly when the television screen turned dark. "Oh? What's this, now?"

A news anchor's voice came through the speakers as the screen showed a rainy scene on the Konoha Bridge. "A tragic story almost took a turn for the worst late last night as a young man by the name of Gaara Subakuno contemplated suicide here at the Konoha Bridge. It's been revealed that, earlier that evening, Gaara suffered a serious trauma as he killed his own father in self-defense. In his despair, Gaara was going to throw himself to his death, but was stopped by a heroic friend named Naruto Uzumaki."

Kakashi's eyes widened as the familiar blond's face appeared onscreen. In the photo, he was standing up at the top of a tower on the bridge alongside Gaara. Before he could say a word about this, however, Iruka suddenly shouted out in a combination of indignation and horror.

"NARUTO?!"

For a moment, Kakashi wasn't sure what surprised him more: the fact that Naruto was on the news, or that Iruka somehow knew who the blond was. He decided to find an answer to the simpler question first. "You know him?"

"Know him? He's my son!" Iruka replied, his leg bouncing up and down as he bit his lip nervously. It was like he was debating whether to rush out and find Naruto right then so he could give him a piece of his mind.

_Son? He did say he had a son, but I never would've thought it was Naruto! This might complicate matters…_

"I didn't know that. You should've said something – Naruto's in one of my classes," Kakashi added, hoping he could somehow calm the other man down.

"He won't be when I'm through with him! What the hell did he think he was doing?!" Iruka exclaimed, leaping off the couch so he could pace back and forth in agitation. "I mean, it's bad enough that he climbed to the top of that tower to begin with, but to chase after someone unstable like that? He could've been killed!"

With a sigh, Kakashi rose and placed a hand firmly on Iruka's shoulder. "Look, I'm not saying you're wrong – it _was _stupid – but I'm sure Naruto knew what he was doing. I've seen him at work before – he could probably work as a hostage negotiator if he wanted to. He has a gift to make people listen to him, to make them trust him. Does that make sense?"

"How would you know?" Iruka asked in a momentary state of confusion.

"Didn't you hear about the fight he had with Gaara before?" the silver-haired teacher responded quickly, realizing he'd said too much.

"You mean this isn't the first time something like this has happened?! Oh, he's so dead… no! I'm going to punish him so hard he'll _wish_ he was dead…"

_I'm really digging myself a hole here…_

"He probably kept it from you because he didn't want to worry you. Look, here's the thing – Gaara was picking a fight with Sasuke, and it looked like he was going to win. Next thin you know, Naruto's jumping in to protect Sasuke, and soon both he and Gaara are lying in a bloody heap on the ground."

"Oh, so he can defend himself. That's good to know – he's still dead, though," Iruka seethed, his eyes glued to the television.

"That's not the thing, though! You see, afterwards, Naruto and Gaara became good friends. It was like Naruto cast a spell on him or something – I haven't seen him attack anyone since."

"Except his father, apparently," Iruka muttered before glancing up at the other man and sighing. "Look, Kakashi, I appreciate what you're trying to do, but this is something Naruto and I are going to have to work out on our own."

Kakashi hesitated before nodding with a soft smile. "I understand – it's not really my business. Still, don't let it ruin your day. Let's just go to the park as planned, and you can deal with Naruto when we're done."

For a moment, Iruka seemed intent of hunting down Naruto and tearing him a new one, his eyes practically boring a hole through the television screen. When he finally met Kakashi's eyes, though, his anger receded and he sighed reluctantly. "All right – but I'll have to pass on lunch today. This whole thing's made me sick to my stomach."

"Fair enough," Kakashi responded before turning towards the hallway. "Now, if you'll excuse me for a minute, I have to get dressed."

All in all, it only took Kakashi five minutes or so to get ready. He threw on some black pants and a green shirt, as well as his trademark mask, before heading to the bathroom to quickly brush his teeth. Once he was ready, he and Iruka started for the park, which was just a short walk from Kakashi's apartment.

As they walked in relative silence, Kakashi contemplated the new revelation about Naruto. Normally it wouldn't be a problem, but Kakashi had received a phone call from Jiraiya the night before, warning him to be prepared to take on guardianship of Sasuke. If the worst did happen, it was very likely that Kakashi would end up acting as the Uchiha's father. And if Kakashi was dating Iruka, that would also mean that their sons would be dating as well.

_I mean, I guess I'm not technically related to Sasuke or anything… and Iruka's not related to Naruto. It's not like it's incest or anything, but… it's weird!_

The problem, of course, was Kakashi couldn't actually say anything about this dilemma to Iruka. The truth was, Kakashi wasn't even supposed to know that Sasuke and Naruto were a couple. It was all supposed to be a secret – at least, that's what he assumed, since no one at school was talking about it. And even if they were official, it wasn't Kakashi's place to tell Iruka about Naruto's personal life. Maybe Naruto was still insecure discussing such things with Iruka – how would he feel if Kakashi suddenly started blabbing about it without the blond's consent? No, the best policy at the moment was to keep quiet – the issue with Naruto and Sauske would have to be his burden to bear alone.

Soon, Kakashi and Iruka arrived at the park, where they proceeded along the path at a leisurely pace. As they strolled along, they watched the birds flying overhead, the orange and yellow leaves on the trees, and the squirrels scurrying about, gathering nuts for the winter. It was all a very pleasant sight, and it helped ease Kakashi's worry. It wasn't long before the silver-haired man was ready to ask the question that had been burning within him for the past half hour.

"How did the two of you meet? You and Naruto, that is," Kakashi asked casually, glancing over at the brunet.

"What makes you think we met? He's my son, after all."

Kakashi rolled his eyes. "Look, you're not fooling anyone. News spreads quickly around here – Naruto's past is very well-known."

Iruka sighed. "Is that so? And here I was hoping he'd be able to escape that by coming here…"

"Believe me, I have nothing but admiration for him because of it. To imagine going through something like the Kyuubi murders and coming out as such a strong young man… it's nothing short of incredible."

"Well, let's have a seat, then. It's a long story," Iruka said before the two of them sat down on a bench beside the park's trickling stream. "It was several years after the Kyuubi incident when I first met Naruto – he was six at the time. To tell you the truth, I didn't know who he was at first. When I went to the orphanage, I didn't really know what I was looking for. It was a confusing time for me…"

"How so?" Kakashi asked with a puzzled frown.

"I was a student when the murders first happened – just finished my freshman year and was feeling pretty good about myself. The night Kyuubi went on his rampage, I was home on break. I'd gone out to see a movie with some friends, and I went home alone. When I got there, it was already swarmed with police. Apparently my parents were some of Kyuubi's first victims," Iruka admitted solemnly."

Kakashi was shocked. He couldn't even bear to make eye contact with the other man, but only stared at the grass, regretting having brought up the subject. "I'm sorry to hear that. Look, let's talk about something else…"

"No, no – you forget, this is a happy story. You have to go down before you can go back up, right?" Iruka interrupted with a weak smile. "I'll admit I was traumatized when I found out. It felt like my whole life had been turned upside down. Still, I managed to go back to school and focus on my studies – I guess they distracted me from my problems. When I graduated, though, and I realized I no longer had a home to return to, I suddenly felt the pangs of loneliness."

"And that's why you went to the orphanage?"

Iruka nodded. "I suppose I wanted to try and fill that void in my life, and I couldn't think of a better way to do it than to adopt a child. When I arrived at the orphanage, though, I really had mixed feelings about the whole thing. I mean, I was a single man just coming out of college – how could I possibly raise a child?

"That all changed, though, when I saw Naruto. See, the first kids I saw didn't really impress me. I'm sure they were great and everything, but none of them seemed like a good fit for me. They all huddled around me, trying to win me over, but it didn't work, and I was considering just abandoning the whole idea altogether. But then I saw that little blond boy sitting in the corner by himself, and I suddenly felt something inside of me – something that screamed, 'This is the one.'"

"So you went over and talked to him?"

"Well, I tried. I crouched down and tried to get him to look at me, but he was a stubborn little guy. Whenever I tried to look him in the eye, he'd just turn his head the other way. Clearly he didn't want anything to do with me – but I was determined. I can still remember that first conversation perfectly. I just said, 'Well, you're a funny little guy, aren't you? What's your name?' to which he replied with a 'Hmph.'"

"Really? Naruto just completely ignored you?" Kakashi asked, raising an eyebrow in disbelief. "I can't even imagine that."

"Oh yeah – I've never seen a kid with such visible contempt before or since. I pressed on, though. 'Aren't you going to say hello?' I asked him, trying my best to sound friendly. He wasn't buying it, though. He looked right up at me and said, 'No.' Just like that."

"I was a bit confused, as you might imagine, so I asked him, 'Well, why not?' I didn't expect his response at all, and it broke my heart. He said, ''Cause you'll hate me like everyone else. Just leave me alone!'"

Iruka paused, his eyes growing misty as he watched a chipmunk rush through the leaves nearby. "I didn't say anything else at the time. I knew I wasn't going to gain any ground right then, but wasn't ready to give up. I asked the woman in charge of the orphanage if she could tell me what was wrong with the quiet blond boy in the corner. Her face grew serious all of a sudden, and she shot Naruto a worried glance before answering. 'Remember Kyuubi? The man behind all those murders a few years ago? That's his son – the boy's a monster. You don't want him.'"

"Sounds like a swell lady," Kakashi muttered in disgust.

"I can't really blame her for feeling that way. Kyuubi was still fresh in everyone's mind at the time – just mentioning his name was enough to send a shiver down your spine. To the people in Mizu, Naruto was nothing but a living reminder of that night – nobody wanted anything to do with him," Iruka continued, looking somewhat ashamed. "That includes me."

"You're exaggerating. Kyuubi killed your parents – it's only natural that you'd feel uneasy around Naruto."

"But it wasn't just uneasiness – as soon as I found out who Naruto really was, I suddenly felt nothing but hatred for him. I think that's how everyone felt – even the other kids in the orphanage. I wouldn't be surprised if some of those kids were only there because Kyuubi killed their parents, too. Just about everyone in town was affected in some shape or form. It hurts to even think about it now… but to us, he really was just a monster."

"Then how did you get over that?" Kakashi asked, leaning back on the bench to eye the other man. "I mean, you did end up adopting him, so I'm assuming you don't hate him anymore."

Iruka smiled. "You're right – I did get over it. As soon as I learned who Naruto was, I immediately left the orphanage. My heart was racing – it was like I was living that night all over again. When I stepped into my apartment, I didn't even dare to turn on the lights – I was convinced I'd find my parents lying on the bloody floor again. As I sat there in the dark, though, I think my loneliness really started to sink in. If I had someone to turn to for comfort at that time, I wouldn't have had to sit there terrified in my apartment. But, of course, I had no one. It was just me and that haunting image of my parents."

"I'm not sure why it happened exactly – maybe thinking about my parents and Kyuubi brought me back to it – but that's when I found myself thinking about Naruto. Something about that little blond boy sitting all alone in the orphanage – I realized we were more alike than I'd thought. We were both victims of Kyuubi's murders, left all alone in the world in the aftermath. I think logic took over at that point – it didn't make much sense for the two of us to keep on living alone when we could at least comfort each other. And, of course, once that idea entered my head, it wouldn't leave no matter how hard I tried."

"How long did it take you to go back to the orphanage, then?" Kakashi asked with a smirk.

"About twelve hours. The next day, as soon as they opened, I was waiting at the door. Again, Naruto was sitting in the corner, and I went right over to him and sat down on the floor. He only glanced at me for a moment before turning his head to the side, saying, 'Oh, it's you again.' I knew exactly what to say this time, though. I didn't want to patronize him – I knew perfectly well that he was more mature than he looked. Instead, I just stared down at him and said, 'I know I can't possibly understand what you've been through. I can try, though.'"

"Did that work?"

"It got his interest. He looked up at me in surprise and asked, 'What do you mean?' I just stared back at him and said, 'You know what I mean. I'm sure you think nobody understands you – and you're kind of right. Nobody here has been through what you have. You're not alone, though.' That irritated him. 'What do you know?' he snapped. All I had to say was, 'My parents died too. They were murdered.'"

"You told him that? Even though he was so young?" Kakashi asked in astonishment.

"I knew he could handle it. Murder was such a big part of his life – to ignore that would only be insulting to him," Iruka responded, shaking his head. "He knew exactly what I meant, too. Almost immediately, he turned his head to the side and said, 'So you hate me, too.' I shook my head and said, 'No. I admire you.' That's when I think he started to trust me. He seemed positively stunned. 'What do you mean?' he asked. So, I told him, 'You've been through so much, and you're determined to make it on your own. I went through a loss like that, but here I am, trying to find someone that can help me go on. I only wish I had your courage.'"

"Was all that really true?"

"Of course it was," Iruka replied with a solemn nod. "He never asked for anyone else's help – though that was also probably because he knew he'd never get it, not from anyone in Mizu at least. He caught on to my intent, of course, asking why I didn't just pick one of the other kids to take home. And that's when I told him, 'Because I don't want them. I knew the moment I saw you that you were the only one I wanted to bring home with me. So, what do you say? Will you give me a chance?' Though he maintained his moody look, I could tell something had clicked in him. He laced his fingers behind his head and laughed, 'I guess so – since you're all lonely, and everything.'"

"As I got up to talk with the head of the orphanage, I heard him call after me, saying, 'It's Naruto.' I was confused, so I glanced back at him, and he clarified, 'My name… it's Naruto.' I smiled, saying, 'Pleasure to meet you, Naruto. I'm Iruka.' His face scrunched up a bit at that. 'Iruka? That's a funny name.' I chuckled and replied, 'Same could be said about Naruto. I guess it's something we'll just have to get used to.'"

"And that's how the whole thing started, huh?" Kakashi concluded as he rose off the park bench and stretched.

"I came back a week later after filling out the proper paper work and we left the same day," Iruka added, standing up as well. "He was still a little cold and distant at first, but he started to open up more and more. After a month or so, his playful side started to show, and the next thing I knew I had my very own wild child."

"Sounds like Sasuke," Kakashi muttered, only to freeze as soon as the words left his lips.

"Sasuke? You don't mean Sasuke Uchiha do you? How do you know him?" Iruka asked in bewilderment.

"Oh, he's in my class too. He's Obito's cousin, so we've known each other for some time – he didn't particularly like that Obito and I were dating, but he warmed up to me after a while," Kakashi replied hastily before holding his breath, hoping the lie would work.

"Really? What a small world. I met Sasuke the other day at Naruto's apartment – it was actually a little awkward, to tell you the truth," the brunet began with a laugh as they started back down the path. "I was going to help Naruto clean up – there were clothes lying all over the place – but when I ripped the sheets off Naruto's bed, there was Sasuke in all his glory."

Kakashi found himself blushing at this story, and was very glad he was wearing his mask. _How much does he know? Is he really this naïve?_ "That's… unusual."

"Apparently he likes to sleep naked, and Naruto had let him spend the night because of the storm the day before. I felt so bad about it," Iruka said with a sigh. "I just hope I didn't scare him off."

"I don't think you need to worry about that – he and Naruto are very good friends… from what I can tell, that is," the silver-haired man added quickly, realizing that this conversation was headed for disaster. He decided to change the subject as soon as possible. "So, are you going to call Naruto or not?"

Iruka considered this for a moment but finally shook his head. "No… let's just go to lunch instead. My treat."

_I knew he'd come around…_

"All right, then. Lead the way," Kakashi responded with his signature smile, and together the couple strolled through the park, enjoying their calm, quiet Saturday.

* * *

Sasuke Uchiha lay in his bed that Saturday morning feeling utterly exhausted. He hadn't been able to sleep after the preceding night's events, and instead had tossed and turned, his eyes growing increasingly weary with every passing hour. Now that the sun was peeking through his windows, Sasuke knew it was futile to even try and get some sleep. Still, he didn't feel like getting out of bed, but instead just stared up at the ceiling, going over the previous night in his head for the twentieth time.

The thought of Naruto climbing up the side of that tower on the Konoha Bridge made Sasuke's stomach lurch. Yes, Naruto had promised him he'd be fine – and Sasuke knew he meant it. At the same time, though, Sasuke knew there were some things Naruto simply had no control over, and fate was one of them.

_He could've died up there… he almost did! When he fell back like that, I thought it was all over…_

Sasuke tried to reason with himself – to convince himself that Naruto had everything under control. He took deep breaths, trying to calm down his heart that was beating faster and faster as his thoughts progressed, but nothing seemed to help. The truth was, even though everything had turned out okay, Naruto had taken a big risk the previous night.

Any number of things could've gone wrong. Naruto could've lost his grip climbing up the ladder – it was wet and windy, after all. Again, he could've fallen once he got to the top, and he almost did, too. And what about Gaara? Everyone knew he wasn't in a stable mindset. Shikamaru thought that he might even come after Sasuke to finish what he'd started. It was only a stroke of luck that Gaara trusted Naruto enough not to shove him off the bridge in an instant.

_Then again… what if Naruto just knew Gaara well enough to know he'd be safe? He probably would've done the same thing for any of his friends… or for me…_

Still, the fear remained. Even though Sasuke knew everything had turned out okay, that precarious moment had planted a seed of doubt in the Uchiha's mind. What if Naruto _had_ fallen? What if he'd died? It would've left Sasuke alone all over again, and just the thought of that horrified Sasuke.

_I'm in too deep to do anything about it now, though. It's not like I can just walk away, knowing how I feel about him. But to think of having that taken away from me…_

Suddenly, the doorbell rang. For a moment, Sasuke just ignored it and rolled over, pressing his face down into the pillow. After a few more rings, however, he realized that Itachi must have gone to work, and the servants weren't there on the weekend. With a sigh, he rolled out of bed and threw on a pair of pajama pants before stomping downstairs. Upon throwing open the door, the Uchiha glanced up in surprise to see a familiar, white-haired police officer standing with a bundle tucked under his arm.

"Ah, hello there… Sasuke, was it? I hope I didn't wake you," Jiraiya greeted with a grin.

"May I help you?" the Uchiha asked curtly as he stared up at the man.

"Oh, no – I'm just here to drop this off," the officer replied, holding out the bundle. "A few of my subordinates came in late last night with these – apparently they found them on some punk kids who were drunk driving."

Sasuke untied the bundle curiously to find a pile of clothes within – his and Naruto's clothes. "You found these?"

"Well, the kids admitted to stealing them – they had other stolen goods on them, so it was easy enough to get them to confess. Then I saw your ID, so I figured I'd drop them off. It looked like that Naruto kid's were in there, too – I thought you might want to give them to him yourself next time you see him," Jiraiya said with a knowing wink.

The Uchiha ignored this particular comment, and reminded himself to kill Itachi the next time he saw him for blabbing about his love life to begin with. "Well, thank you. Is that all, then?"

"Your brother wouldn't happen to be here, would he?" the white-haired man asked, almost as an afterthought.

"No, he's not. I think he's at work."

Jiraiya snapped his fingers in disappointment. "Oh well… maybe you can pass a message along for me, then? Just tell him I'd love to talk to him sometime soon. _Very_ soon."

Sasuke gave the officer a skeptical look as he slowly closed the door. "Sure… I'll pass that along to him."

Without another word, the Uchiha sealed the door shut and stomped back up the stairs to his room, where emptied the contents of Jiraiya's bundle on his bed. He was pleased to find that all of their clothes were there, and proceeded to sort them out into two separate piles – his clothes and Naruto's. It was only after all the clothes were neatly laid out, however, that Sasuke decided to check and see if anything was missing from his pockets.

After digging around briefly, Sasuke was pleased to find that his wallet was still right where he left it, containing exactly $22, just as it had when it was stolen. After shoving the wallet into his own pocket, the Uchiha's attention then shifted over to Naruto's clothes. He hesitated.

_Should I really be going through Naruto's things? It's not like I'm prying or anything – I just want to make sure nothing was stolen, is all…_

Having justified his decision, Sasuke picked up the blond's black pants and slid his hand into the pocket. There, he felt the distinct texture of leather, and pulled forth a worn wallet, which he opened up tentatively. As Sasuke soon discovered, though, he had opened the wallet upside down, spilling all of its contents onto the bed.

"Crap," the Uchiha muttered as he gathered up the various odds and ends that had somehow made their way into Naruto's wallet.

Sasuke couldn't help but wonder when the blond had last cleaned out his wallet, considering the miscellanea that he was stuffing back inside. Movie tickets from five years ago, a receipt for a donut, coins from countries that Sasuke wasn't even sure existed anymore – they were all buried inside the bulging wallet. What the Uchiha took particular interest in, though, was Naruto's student ID, for it was there that Sasuke caught a glimpse of a number that made him freeze.

"October 10… that's next week!" Sasuke exclaimed, staring at the blond's birthday in shock.

_Then again… I guess I knew that. He did say something about that back when we were working on that project. Did I just not care at that time? I'm sure I'd remember if he told me now… and he probably remembered everything. How did he manage to put up with me then, even when I was acting like such a jerk?_

Sasuke shook his head and replaced the ID, effectively filling the wallet to the brim. After closing it, he returned the wallet to Naruto's pocket and collapsed on the bed, feeling somehow more exhausted than he had ten minutes ago.

"Now I have to get him a birthday gift… something that sums up my feelings for him," the Uchiha murmured, sliding a hand down over his face wearily.

_Well, what are your feelings? Excitement, fear, trust, anger, sadness, awe, anxiety, bliss… love…_

Sasuke chuckled. "Damn you, Naruto – you couldn't make this easy for me, could you?"

Before the Uchiha could dwell on the complicated emotions surrounding Naruto any longer, however, his heavy eyelids had finally fallen, and before long he was snoring softly, his dreams filled with the images of his beloved blond.

---

Well, there you have it! What is going to happen with Kakashi and Iruka, now that their connection to Naruto and Sasuke has been revealed? What about Sasuke and his gift for Naruto? And what of Gaara? How is he holding up after his whole ordeal? Find out in the next chapter of _For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him!_


	33. He Loves Me Again

I'm so sorry, you guys. These past few weeks have been crazy for me. I had midterms, and then I just did not have internet access for a week while I was on break. I do have a chapter for you now, but I'm sorry to say that it is short. Mostly, this chapter is meant to set up the next major plot point - hopefully it'll give you something to look forward to. In any case, I want to thank you all for your patience and for reading/reviewing. Now, without further ado, on with the chapter!

* * *

33. He Loves Me Again

Gaara Subakuno sat in his bland, white bed at the Konoha Hospital, staring blankly at the wall as doctors and nurses passed outside. He had spent all of the previous day talking with police officers and lawyers about what had happened with his father, retelling the story close to a dozen times. With every time the redhead told the tale, he thought for sure it would be easier than the last. It wasn't. Just thinking about what happened that night brought forth all kinds of unsettling images – the bloodlust in his father's eyes, the blood streaming down his face after Gaara had kicked him, and, most frightening of all, Lee. It was painful for Gaara to even think about the horror he had seen in the mop-topped teen's face during the fight, not to mention how he looked once Gaara had delivered the mortal blow to Mr. Subakuno.

_He sees now… he knows what I mean when I say I'm a monster. I'll probably never see him again…_

It was a depressing thought, but Gaara had managed to accept it. This was his punishment for what he did – it was his penance to spend the rest of his life alone. For that, he was grateful to Naruto. The blond had kept him from ending his suffering prematurely – now he could live his life and endure his punishment.

Because of that, Gaara had spent all of that Sunday morning simply staring at the wall, cut off from the rest of the world. The television in his room was off, the curtains in his room were shut, and the door was open only a crack. The redhead didn't even notice the nurse when she poked her head into the room, or when she announced that he had a visitor. It was as if he was completely dead on the inside.

Then the door opened. Gaara didn't shift his attention, but when he heard his visitor cough, his eyes went wide. Turning towards the doorway, he found a familiar teen with big, round eyes dressed entirely in green staring awkwardly down at the floor.

"Lee?"

"H-hey, Gaara," the teen replied, scratching the back of his head while keeping the other hand behind his back. "I-I heard they admitted you here, so…"

"Yeah – they want to keep me here to monitor me for a few weeks. After what happened Friday, you know…"

"Right, that makes sense," Lee said sheepishly. "I'm… sorry about what happened, by the way."

"It wasn't your fault," Gaara replied quickly, hoping to end the discussion at that.

"If I hadn't been there, then…"

"It wouldn't have made any difference. What happened between me and my dad had been coming for a long time. You were just in the wrong place at the wrong time."

"But I at least could have helped! I could have called the police, I could have helped restrain him… instead I just sat there cowering," Lee responded in self-disgust. "I was just so scared, Gaara… I didn't know what to do…"

It was only then that Gaara realized that Lee was fighting back tears, as a single drop rolled down his cheek. This wasn't just an empty apology, a run-of-the-mill sign of sympathy. Lee actually felt guilty for what had happened – that he could have somehow prevented this entire tragedy. He felt a deep pang of sadness as he slid over on the bed.

"Have a seat, Lee."

Biting his lip, the mop-topped teen nodded and tentatively sat down beside the redhead. He avoided eye contact, however, instead choosing to stare at the object he had been hiding behind his back – a worn, stuffed bear.

"Is that yours?" Gaara asked, avoiding the issue at hand, if only for a moment.

"I was trying to think of a gift to bring you. It always made me feel better when I was down," Lee replied with a weak smile. He placed the bear in Gaara's lap. "I hope it helps you – at least a little bit."

Gaara studied the bear briefly, running his hand over its matted fur and poking at the button that had replaced one of its eyes. He chuckled. "I used to have a bear like this, you know. Back when I was a kid. Temari always said it was a gift from my mom. I suppose that was just a lie, though…"

"What makes you say that?"

"You heard what my dad said in there – my mom never even wanted me. She hated me, just like he did. Just like Temari and Kankuro did…"

Lee's eyes became suddenly fierce with anger. "That's not true! You saw how Temari and Kankuro showed up at the bridge like that. They were worried about you! The same goes for Naruto, Sasuke, Shikamaru, Kiba – everyone was out there trying to save you."

"Then where were you?" the redhead snapped. There was a moment of silence before he looked away, feeling immediately guilty. "I'm sorry… I didn't mean that…"

Visibly crushed, Lee swallowed heavily before responding. "No… it's all right. I let you down, I know. That's why I almost didn't come here today. I… I didn't think I was worthy. I was just so scared, Gaara… after what happened between you and your dad, I didn't know what you'd do…"

"What? Did you think I'd go on a rampage or something?"

"No, no, no! Nothing like that!" Lee replied hastily, only to be cut off moments later by Gaara's sustained monotone.

"Because you would've been right. That's what I was doing up on that bridge – I was going back and forth. I could either kill myself and put an end to the monster inside of me, or just let it take over. Everyone I cared about… I was going to take them down with me – that's what I thought, at least. I couldn't decide, though. I just didn't want anyone to suffer because of me anymore… it just hurt too much."

Leaning over, Lee gently wiped a tear from the corner of Gaara's eye and placed a hand on his shoulder. "That just shows you're not a monster. You have a conscience, Gaara. You're not a killer."

Gaara was silent for a moment as he stared down at the bear in his hands. "Do you really think she loved me, Lee?"

"Let me ask you this: you hated your father, right?"

The redhead nodded.

"But you loved him, too?"

Another nod.

"So if you can still love a man who tried to kill you, who never once showed that he cared for you, how can you possibly question the love of the woman who brought you into this world?" Lee asked, staring directly into Gaara's bewildered eyes. "Even if your mom didn't mean to get pregnant, even if she was afraid for her own life, she's your mother, Gaara. She loved you – and I'm sure that, somewhere inside, so did your father."

Tears now flowing freely, Gaara collapsed into his boyfriend's arms, crying openly into Lee's green shirt. "Why did he do it, Lee? Why couldn't he just be happy for me? For us?"

Gently running his fingers through Gaara's hair, Lee whispered consolingly, "I don't know, I don't know… no one knows except him. Whatever his reasons, though, what happened isn't your fault. Even if we could've done something differently, it's in the past. What's done is done. We just have to move on and enjoy what we have, okay?"

Gaara sniffled. "Like what? What's left? My parents are dead because of me…"

"You still have Temari and Kankuro, right? And don't forget about your friends. And… me," Lee responded with a hopeful tone.

The redhead glanced up in surprise. "You mean… you're not afraid of me?"

"I've always been afraid of you," Lee chuckled. "I saw what you did to Naruto when you fought that one day. That doesn't mean I don't love you."

_Did he just say…?_

"Love?"

Lee blushed. "Well… yeah. I don't know how else to explain it, really. That's why I couldn't go with them to the bridge the other day – I was afraid I'd lose you. I didn't want to see that happen… you mean too much to me."

"Lee… just stop talking," Gaara interrupted abruptly, placing a finger to the other teen's lips. Moments later, the redhead removed his hand and replaced it with his lips, meeting Lee's in a short, sweet kiss. After backing out, he wiped a tear from the corner of his eye and smiled. "Thank you, Lee. I… I needed that."

"Then… does that mean?" Lee asked, scratching the back of his head sheepishly.

"Yes – I love you, too."

xxxxx

"I want to have sex."

Naruto couldn't believe the words had just left his mouth. It had certainly been something weighing on the teen's mind for a while, but he had never expected to simply blurt it out like that. He had even considered saying something about it when he and Sasuke went to Lake Konoha, but the opportunity never presented itself. Instead, he had waited until he was sitting on the couch in the Uchiha mansion, playing a round of Halo with his beloved Uchiha. Apparently, nothing screamed 'sex' more than killing aliens with dual Needlers.

Clearly, Sasuke hadn't expected this outburst either, his character promptly dying as his jaw dropped open. "W-what was that?"

Hesitating, Naruto decided it was best to stick to his story. If he tried to say something completely different, it would only bring problems later on. "I said I want to have sex."

"That's what I thought," the Uchiha said, setting down his controller. "Where did this come from all of a sudden? I thought you'd want to lay low for a while after the tongue lashing you got from your dad yesterday."

"Oh that? That was nothing – honestly, I was expecting much worse. You should have heard him the time I ran away from home. He can be scary when he's angry…" the blond responded with a shudder. "The truth is, I've been thinking about it for a while. I mean, we've been together for, what, a month now? We've done other things, right? Like when we fooled around in the shower, or the other day at Lake Konoha…"

"You're lucky we got our clothes back, by the way. I would've been pissed if I had to get a new wallet."

"It worked out!" Naruto protested before getting back on track. "Anyway, my point is, it seems like the next step is to go all the way, you know?"

"You're sure about this?" Sasuke asked after a moment, much to Naruto's surprise.

_He's actually considering this! Maybe this won't be the train wreck I thought it would be…_

"Well… yeah. It's what boyfriends do, right? You date for a while, and then you have sex."

"I suppose."

Naruto was beginning to cringe slightly. Their conversation had gone from being a bit awkward to almost painful. Clearly, Naruto hadn't thought this through, since his reasoning for wanting to have sex boiled down to 'everyone's doing it.' It was weak, shallow, and childish. Despite this, though, Sasuke was putting a great deal of thought into the subject. It was a bit confusing to Naruto, who had assumed the Uchiha would simply ignore the proposition entirely. When the raven-haired teen finally did speak, it only surprised Naruto all the more.

"How about Friday – October 10th, right?" the Uchiha asked, glancing up at the blond. He then hurriedly added, "That'll give us time to prepare. Don't want to just rush into this or anything…"

_October 10th? What a weird thing to say…_

"So… we're planning this? I thought it was supposed to be something more… spontaneous?" Naruto said skeptically.

Sasuke was quick to counter this challenge. "Well, do you know what the hell you're doing? Do you know what we'll need? How to… well, do it?"

"What? O-of course I do! It's not like I'm…"

"A virgin?" the Uchiha interrupted with a raised eyebrow. He sighed before continuing. "Well, even if you are a manwhore, I'm not… if you catch my drift."

"Then… this will be…?"

"My first time, yes," Sasuke admitted with a blush.

"Umm… confession," Naruto said with an awkward grin. "I'm not exactly experienced myself."

The Uchiha chuckled. "I figured as much. Still, I have to wonder why you thought you'd have to lie to me about something like that. It's nothing to be ashamed of. We've just been waiting for each other, right?"

Naruto's eyes brightened. "Exactly! It's fate – at least that's what that Neji kid would say."

"He may be on to something there," Sasuke responded as he picked up his controller once more. "Now, as I recall, I was about to cut you in half with a laser sword."

"Not if I get you first!"

With that, the boyfriends resumed their game, though neither one played nearly as well as before. Both were now distracted by the thought of what waited for them on Friday, their minds filled with anxiety, excitement, and a touch of uncertainty. Little did they know that what was in store for them would have far greater consequences than either of them could imagine.

* * *

Well, there you have it. We got some nice Gaara/Lee warm, fuzzy goodness, and we have a glimpse at what Sasuke may be planning for Naruto's birthday. But, now that we've seen how Gaara's taking the loss of his father, what about Temari and Kankuro's reaction? How are they holding up, and how does this all affect Shikamaru's relationship with Temari? And what about Sakura? She still has Sasuke wrapped around her finger - how will this affect the Uchiha's plans with Naruto? Find out next time in _For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him_.


	34. LiLaLi

Well, the new chapter is ready. Sorry to say that it's even shorter than the last one, but, like I said, these are all building up to the next big event, which should come in a few chapters. Until then, I suppose these shorter bits will have to do. I'd like to thank you all for reading as usual, and to especially thank you for reviewing. Anyway, on with the chapter!

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34. Li-la-li

Shikamaru Nara stood in the pouring rain at Konoha Cemetery Monday morning, clad entirely in black. It had taken him a while to find the right suit for the occasion – usually he would've dismissed the entire issue as being too troublesome – but this was different. He was positioned beside Temari, who was also dressed in black, with Kankuro standing on the opposite side of his sister. And, of course, lying in front of them was Mr. Subakuno, waiting to be lowered to his eternal rest. Gaara was conspicuously absent, though Shikamaru hadn't expected the redhead to show up. It was far too soon.

It was a very uncomfortable occasion for all involved. Everyone, it seemed, had mixed feelings about the man. He was cold and gruff, yet he clearly cared for his family in some respects. It was as if he had resigned himself to being a providing father, even though it had cost him the woman he loved, and his happiness as a result.

What weighed on their minds even more, though, were the circumstances behind Mr. Subakuno's death. No one was sure what had driven him to do what he did. There were theories, of course – they had learned that he had lost his job before attacking Gaara, and some suggested that he was already unstable from that blow. Still, it was hard to defend a man who had tried to kill his own son. That last act had revealed a dark side to Mr. Subakuno that even those closest to him hadn't fully known.

Shikamaru could only imagine the combination of emotions running through Temari's mind at that moment, as the rain beat down on her father's casket. Sorrow, certainly – it was hard for anyone to lose a parent, even late in life. To go through that as a teen only made it harder. Pity? Perhaps – his last actions were motivated by his bitterness towards his own son stemming from the loss of his beloved wife. Truly, it was pathetic that he couldn't move on, even after sixteen years. Regret, since she wasn't there to stop him. More than anything else, though, Shikamaru was sure Temari felt a sense of shame. Shame that her father was such a shallow man. Shame that he couldn't grow to accept his son. Shame that he would want to kill Gaara for being gay, of all things.

_Not that I'm much better… I didn't trust him. I thought Gaara was just a killer – a monster out for blood. Some friend I am…_

As the rain ran down his wool suit in tiny little beads, Shikamaru finally glanced up at Temari, having avoided eye contact throughout the entire service. While the priest before them spoke of Mr. Subakuno's accomplishments, trying to portray the man in a positive light, Shikamaru found that Temari's eyes were completely stolid. They simply stared down at the casket, betraying no emotion whatsoever. It was almost as if she was determined not to cry – as if Mr. Subakuno wasn't worthy of her tears.

"Now, if anyone would like a moment to pay their last respects, please come forward and do so now," the priest said as he stepped to the side, clasping his hands in front of him.

A few older men stepped forward – apparently some of Mr. Subakuno's coworkers. They laid their hands on the casket and paused, giving the man a silent prayer before moving aside for the next in line. After a few minutes, Kankuro approached the casket as well and brushed his hand against the casket in turn.

"You never made it to one of my puppet shows… but that's okay. I'm sure you would've made it eventually. I'll just have to give you a private show sometime, that's all…"

With that, the teen bit his lip and stepped away from the casket, his fresh tears blending in with the rain as he returned to his spot. Shikamaru gazed up at Temari, expecting her to follow her brother's lead. She didn't budge, though, but simply stared at the casket with an almost hawk-like vigilance.

"Anyone else?" the priest asked after a moment. When no one responded, he coughed and approached the casket once more. "Then, Kaze Subakuno, may you find solace in your present rest, and find eternal bliss in the life of the world to come. Amen."

The crowd responded with a resounding 'Amen' before dispersing, with everyone going their separate ways as the casket was lowered into the grave. Soon, it was only Temari, Shikamaru, and the priest left around the funeral plot, the only sound being the pitter-patter of the rain. It was only when the priest had gathered his things and left that Temari finally moved forward, looming over the casket below.

"Shikamaru… remember how my dad reacted the first time the two of you met?"

"He threatened to castrate me with a rusty fork," the Nara replied in his usual monotone.

Temari chuckled. "He used to do that to all my dates. Usually it scared them off. When you brought me back on time that night, though, I could tell he was impressed. He liked you, Shika."

"He had a funny way of showing it," Shikamaru said with a weak chuckle.

"That's how he was, though. He… he had trouble showing his emotions. He was cold to everyone – it was easier for him, I guess. After losing Mom, it was like he couldn't bear to let anyone see the pain he was in." Temari paused here, momentarily choked up. After this hiccup, though, a single tear rolled down her cheek as she continued. "I understand why he was like that now. It's hard, keeping everything bottled up inside. I've been trying all morning, but… I just can't do it, Shika."

With that, Temari dropped to her knees, tears dripping from her cheeks onto the casket below. Not knowing quite what to do, Shikamaru sat down on the grass beside her and placed his hand comfortingly on her knee. Without a word, Temari rested her head on her boyfriend's shoulder. Shikamaru didn't budge, but let her cry into his shoulder as she released all her pent up emotions from that morning. When they finally left, the sun was just starting to poke through the clouds. It was time to start anew.

xxxxx

"You're awfully quiet today, Sasuke."

Sasuke Uchiha looked up in surprise to find a smiling Sakura staring back at him, a hint of bitterness hidden in her voice. "I'm sorry, were you saying something?"

"Oh, no – nothing important. I was just wondering whether I should let out your little secret or not," the pink-haired teen said before taking a sip of her soda.

The past week had been a long one for the Uchiha, having to spend every lunch period with Sakura. He knew he didn't have much of a choice in the matter – she knew about the secret between him and Naruto, and she was willing to use whatever underhanded tactics she could to win Sasuke over. This meant that Sasuke had to play along whenever Sakura wanted to act all lovey-dovey, despite the fact that it made Sasuke want to vomit.

Today it was particularly difficult to keep his mind focused on the task at hand, though – not with Naruto sitting just a few tables away. Their little talk about sex the day before had really caught Sasuke off guard. It was the perfect opportunity, though – what better way to show Naruto that he really cared than to show him the ultimate form of physical intimacy? Plus, it worked as a birthday gift as well – it was a win-win situation. Still, Sasuke couldn't help but feel a bit apprehensive about the whole idea. After all, it was a pretty big jump – what if he wasn't ready for it?

_No! Quit thinking like that, Sasuke! This is the perfect chance – you have to seize this opportunity!_

"Ahem… Sasuke? You're zoning out again."

"W-what? Oh, right. So how was your weekend, Sakura?" the Uchiha asked through gritted teeth.

"You know what, Sasuke? I don't think you really care about Naruto at all. The way you've been acting today, it's almost as if you want me to tell the whole school about the two of you," Sakura continued, ignoring Sasuke's question altogether.

"I'm sorry – I'm just a bit distracted today."

"Is that so? Something Naruto said over the weekend? Something the two of you did? Have a little recreation of that time in the locker room?" the pink-haired teen continued with a venomous look. "I'm warning you, Sasuke – if I catch you looking over at him one more time, I'll do it. You're mine now – he's out of the picture. The sooner you understand that, the sooner we can live a happy life together."

"That was never part of the deal," the Uchiha cut in with a dangerous tone. "I said I'd play along with this little charade of yours, but I never said that I'd leave Naruto. That's not for you to decide."

"Oh, but it is. I have your reputation in the palm of my hand," Sakura said coolly as she took a bite of her sandwich. "It's up to you whether I crush it or set it free."

"Since when have I cared about my reputation? It's not like I tried to be popular – I've done everything in my power to get rid of you crazy fangirls."

"And in my other hand, I have Naruto's reputation. Or did you forget that he's involved, too?" Sakura responded, holding out an open hand demonstratively.

Sasuke was silent.

"You know how delicate Naruto is. After what happened with Kyuubi, with the kids at the orphanage in Mizu – his past has haunted him, made him an outcast. And now, just when it looks like he might get accepted, you send him right out onto the fringe of society just because you can't do what's best for him," Sakura said with a smile as she took another sip of her soda. "Face it – you're better off with me than a loser like him."

His brow furrowed with rage, Sasuke leaped to his feet, knocking his chair backwards in the process. He slammed his hands on the table, drawing the attention of most of the cafeteria as everyone went silent.

"Now look here. I can deal with pretending to be your girlfriend, and I can even avoid Naruto if you want, but I'm not just going to sit idly by while you make fun of him behind his back. Naruto may have had a rough past, but that's not something he should be ridiculed for – we should admire him for it. He's a better person because of the hardship he's been through, and he's certainly a better person than you'll ever be. Now, if you want to go ahead and blab your little secret or whatever, fine – I don't care. But if you're expecting me to suddenly fall in love with you, you can just forget it. No one will _ever _fall for an insensitive, manipulative bitch like you."

With that, Sasuke stormed off, stopping at the cafeteria door to shout out one last farewell. "Goodbye, Sakura – talk to me sometime when you grow up."

As the cafeteria door slammed shut, the student body suddenly broke into a cacophony of whispers, with many shooting Sakura furtive glances. The pink-haired girl, meanwhile, could only stare down at her lunch in shock, the humiliation slowly showing in her reddening face. Then, after swallowing the last bit of her sandwich, she rose from her table and stepped out of the room, her misty eyes betraying her heartbreak.

* * *

Well, there you have it. Shikamaru and Temari get a sweet, graveside moment, and Sasuke ends his agreement with Sakura. What consequences will this move have? And how will Sasuke deal with the upcoming issue of sex? I think it's time for him to visit an old friend... Until next time, folks, remember - review!


	35. A Come on for the Whores on 7th Avenue

Good day and a rich welcome to you all. I bring you the next chapter of _For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him._ Sorry to say it's a short one again - however, I assure you the next chapter will be longer and... well, more active. Anyway, thank you to you all for reading and reviewing, and without further ado, on with the chapter!

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35. A Come on from the Whores on 7th Avenue

Sasuke Uchiha walked down the path in the park that Thursday, his mind racing. He had decided to head there immediately after school, so that he might sort out some of his problems. Again, this wasn't something he could talk to Shikamaru or Kakashi about – and certainly not Naruto. No, this was a job for O.

That day at school had been very unusual. Sasuke had gone in expecting the whole school to know about his relationship with Naruto. He had even talked it over with the blond beforehand – what they would do, what they would say, how they would act – but it was all unnecessary. Everyone treated them exactly the same. The closest anyone came to mentioning the subject was one guy who congratulated him for putting Sakura in her place. Apparently, everyone thought that Sakura's secret was irrelevant – all that mattered was her very public form of humiliation.

Still, Sasuke knew that Sakura's threat remained. Just because she hadn't told the whole world overnight didn't mean that she wouldn't the next day, or the next week, or even the next month. She had already proven herself to be crafty – she wouldn't want to lose her credibility by letting emotion get in her way.

Of course, what was more important was what the Uchiha had planned for the next day. October 10th, Naruto's birthday, the day they would take their relationship to the next level. The thought made Sasuke's hands tremble. Was it too soon? Was he overreacting? Was this how most people felt before they had sex for the first time? Did this mean that he really cared for Naruto? That this wasn't just some carnal pleasure, but something deeper?

Sasuke sighed.

_Geez… I'm fucked up…_

"Well, well… what have we here?"

Glancing up, Sasuke found he had arrived at Orochimaru's usual spot underneath the shady tree. The leaves had started to change color by now, and many were drifting down to the ground as the pale-skinned man strummed on his guitar. It was strangely peaceful for the Uchiha, seeing his old friend sitting right where he'd always been – like things hadn't completely changed since he met Naruto. There was still some stability in his life.

"Kabuto, can you go over and practice with Tayuya for a bit? I'd like a minute alone with Sasuke," O asked the spectacled man at his side as he set down his guitar.

"Of course, Orochimaru," Kabuto replied, adjusting his glasses as he rose from the ground. Once he was safely out of earshot, Orochimaru turned his attention back on the raven-haired teen with an enigmatic smile.

"Now, then… let me guess, Sasuke – trouble in paradise?"

Sasuke plopped down on the grass, the dead leaves crackling as he propped himself up against the tree. "You could say that, I suppose."

"Hmm… well, the last time I heard from you, it was when your precious little Naruto was befriending that Gaara character. I saw him on the news the other day, up on the Konoha Bridge. How did that all come about?"

"It wasn't his fault – his dad tried to kill him. Gaara ended up killing him in self-defense, and he was about to commit suicide out of grief. Naruto stopped him," Sasuke replied with a somewhat admiring smile. There was still a hint of the worry he felt that evening in his lips, however, and Orochimaru saw it instantly.

"That's not all that happened though, I take it? I couldn't help but see that Naruto was up on that bridge with Gaara – you didn't let him go alone, did you?"

"Not exactly. We all went to the bridge together – me, Shikamaru, Naruto, and his roommate – but Gaara was up on a tower. Shikamaru and I wanted to wait at the bottom and call the police, but Naruto insisted on going up."

"And you let him?" Orochimaru asked, tuning his guitar casually as he spoke.

"I couldn't stop him," Sasuke responded, shaking his head in self-disgust. "I tried to talk some sense into him – I told him that he could die up there. It was windy, rainy… and Gaara was clearly unstable. He wouldn't listen to reason, though – he had to do what he thought was right. Before he left, though, he promised me he'd come back okay… that he'd never leave me alone again."

"Well, I suppose he kept his promise – unless there's something to this story that I haven't heard."

"No, that's not it. I mean, yes, it all turned out okay, but the whole time I could feel my heart pounding. At one point, he actually fell backwards – I could see his head dangling over the edge. If he'd gone just a few inches further… he would've died."

"So you didn't believe him? You didn't think he'd actually keep his promise?" O asked with a curious glance before plucking one of the strings.

"How could I? He promised me something that's beyond his control!"

"Well… what _can_ we control, really?" Orochimaru said as he began to play a simple tune. "Do we really have free will, or is everything predetermined? If the world was created again – if we could just start over – wouldn't we ultimately end up back where we are now? It's hard to say, but if that's the case, then you were destined to come and talk to me about this today, and Naruto was destined to rescue Gaara up on that bridge."

"So, what, I should just act irrationally, since whatever happens will happen anyway?"

"Not necessarily. But look at this way – even if we have no control over what happens, we still believe that we do, right? You make a promise that you'll turn in a homework assignment on the due date. You probably will turn in that assignment, but in the end, you really have no control over that. You could get struck by lightning as soon as the words leave your lips – boom! Promise broken."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow at the snake-man. "Where are you going with this?"

"What I'm trying to say, Sasuke, is that just because you have no power to keep a promise, it doesn't mean that the promise isn't genuine. It may very well be beyond Naruto's power to make a promise like never leaving you alone again – but, then again, it would be just as unreasonable for him to promise to meet you for dinner in an hour."

"But that's only if you believe in fate."

"Well… what do you believe in, then?" O asked, strumming along slowly. "I'm just offering my take on it – what you think is much more important."

Sasuke hesitated. He hadn't really considered it before. When Naruto made the promise to him, he _had_ believed it. He knew Naruto was sincere, but at the same time the Uchiha had been unable to shake the doubt from his head entirely. "I guess… I _want_ to believe Naruto had the power to fulfill his promise. I do. But I know from the past that promises like those are made to be broke eventually."

"How so?"

"When I was young – before Mom and Dad died – I remember wanting to play with Itachi. He was studying, though, and told me that he couldn't right then, but that he would some other time. That there would come a day when he'd make it up to me. He never did."

"Who's to say he couldn't still? Itachi still has time, you know."

The Uchiha shook his head. "No he doesn't. The Itachi I knew died along with my parents."

Orochimaru went silent for a moment, letting the sound from his guitar fill the void before finally speaking. "Why does this matter to you so much, Sasuke? Whether Naruto can actually keep that promise?"

"Because it reminded me of why I was avoiding that relationship to begin with," Sasuke said his eyes suddenly wide with terror. "I… I thought I was past it. I was _happy_. Then, that whole thing with Gaara… it made me remember how fast it can all be taken away. I don't want that to happen, O. I don't want to lose him."

"Have you told him that?"

Sasuke was taken aback. "What? No, of course not. He doesn't need to worry about this kind of thing…"

"I think he does, Sasuke. From what I understand, this Naruto guy is pretty observant, especially when it comes to people's emotions. Unless I'm wrong, he probably knows something's going on, and is probably thinking it's something he's done," Orochimaru concluded with his usual, mysterious smile. "Tell me, what made you come here, really? That thing with Gaara was almost a week ago – there must be something that made you decided to come and talk with me now."

Sasuke reddened. "The truth is… Naruto wants to have sex."

O chuckled as he set his guitar down. "Oh, my little Sasuke's all grown up. I'm guessing you were caught off guard?"

"I think _he_ was caught off guard. He just blurted it out earlier this week. One minute we're playing _Halo_, the next he's asking me if we can do it."

"Then I was right – he did take your emotional dilemma personally. He thinks that you're not getting enough out of the relationship, which is why you seem so off to him. Naturally, the best way to solve this is to take your relationship a step further – hence the sudden question about sex. He probably thinks it's what you want."

"But… it seemed like he wanted it, too."

"Sasuke, it's sex, and you're both guys. The fact is, you both want sex, and you've wanted it for some time. The question is whether you're ready for it," O continued glancing over at the Uchiha. "And, considering that you're talking about it with me, I'm guessing you're not."

"It hardly matters if I'm ready for it or not – it's something I want to do. For Naruto. He's done so much for me… it's time for me to give him something in return."

"I'm sure you've already given plenty, Sasuke. And, considering the doubts you have right now, I don't think it's a good idea to force yourself into something you're not comfortable with. You're heading for trouble," the snake-man said with genuine concern.

Sasuke rose from his feet in a hurry. "I'll be fine. If I do break down at all, I can always come and talk to you about it later, anyway."

"Well, actually, you can't," O corrected, though he didn't move from his spot at the base of the tree. "'Sound Village' finally booked a gig. We'll be playing at a bar in Suna for the next month or so – they want us to provide the entertainment every night. We leave Saturday morning."

The Uchiha felt his heart sink. O was leaving. Everything _was_ changing. After staring at the pale-skinned man for a moment, though, Sasuke gulped and smiled weakly. "Well, I'll have to come out and see you sometime. I promised I'd come to one of your shows, after all."

"We'd like that. Just remember what I said, Sasuke – and good luck, whatever you choose," Orochimaru concluded as he picked up his guitar once again.

With a nod, Sasuke turned and walked out of the park, listening to the soothing sounds of O's guitar as they were carried along by the cool autumn breeze. Though he was happy to have talked to the man before he left, Sasuke couldn't help but feel that he'd wasted his time. After all, he had made his decision long ago – he was going through with it, one way or another.

xxxxx

Naruto stood in the book section of the local Konoha Wal-Mart with a basket in one hand, his other on his chin in mock thought. In front of him was a row of "For Dummies" books – all bright yellow, and all in alphabetical order. He was currently glancing back and forth between _Sewing for Dummies_ and _Shakespeare for Dummies_, ignoring the book lying conspicuously in-between. Glancing to his left, Naruto found the old woman was still studying _Sewing for Dummies_ intently. He shook his head.

"Are you looking for something in particular, sir?"

Turning around in surprise, Naruto found a middle-aged woman wearing a blue vest standing behind him, a helpful smile on her face. He panicked. "What? N-no… I'm just looking for the… uh…"

"Something in the _For Dummies_ section? We have everything from Animals to Zoos! What subject are you looking into?"

"Umm… really, I'm fine. I know what I want…"

"Well, maybe I can help you find it then. What is it?" the employee continued in her chipper manner.

Naruto bowed his head in humiliation, his face burning as he replied in resignation. "S-sex…"

"I'm sorry? I can't hear you."

"I SAID 'SEX!'" the blond exclaimed, causing the old woman beside him, along with some other customers a short distance away to turn their heads in shock.

The employee attempted to keep her composure, though she was clearly holding back laughter as she approached the bookshelf. "Let's see here… there it is! _Sex for Dummies._ Will that be all?"

"Yes, thank you," Naruto said, hastily taking the book and shoving it into his basket before hurrying down the aisle. Just as he turned the corner, however, he could here the employee call out after him.

"Condoms are over by the pharmacy!"

Cringing, Naruto hurried around the corner and out of sight, ignoring all the amused glances he received as he headed towards the pharmacy. By the time he reached his destination, the blond's face had returned to its usual pallor, though his humiliation remained. He took a deep breath, however, and focused on the task at hand.

_I don't know if Sasuke has anything… I can't count on him coming prepared. It would suck if we were getting ready, only to find out we didn't have the proper supplies. I'll just have to bite the bullet…_

Thus, the vulpine boy started down the pharmacy aisles, searching for the desired products. After passing by lotions, toothpaste, and other beauty aids, Naruto finally came to the proper aisle. There, sitting adjacent to various feminine hygiene products, were several rows of condoms and personal lubricant. He looked around innocently, only to find he had the whole aisle to himself.

_Perfect timing. Just act naturally…_

Whistling nonchalantly, the blond headed over to the condoms and eyed them curiously. It was then that it hit him – he had no idea what to get. There were so many different styles, sizes, and brands that it utterly overwhelmed the poor teen.

_Umm… well, he probably wouldn't like the glow-in-the-dark ones. Or would he? I don't know, maybe he likes kinky things like that. More importantly, what size? I'm a little bit bigger than Sasuke, I think… then again, I haven't really measured or anything._

Naruto looked down at his hands momentarily, moving them back and forth to estimate a good length. He shook his head.

_This isn't going to work… I'll just get them all!_

Setting down his basket on the shelf, Naruto proceeded to toss box after box of condoms into the basket, until he had a whole spectrum of colored packages. He then glanced down at the lube and sighed.

_Okay, now as for these… I've at least heard of Astroglide. It should work, right?_

Tossing the bottle into his basket, Naruto sighed and started for the front of the store, trying his best not to draw attention to himself. Being so concerned with the people around him, though, he didn't pay attention to the checkout lane as he entered and began to unload his basket. It was only after setting the _Sex for Dummies _book on the conveyor belt that the blond glanced up to find a familiar, pink-haired girl standing behind the register, holding a box of condoms in her hand.

"Umm… hi, Sakura," he said, his face instantly turning beet red.

"Hi, Naruto. Will this be all for today?" Sakura asked distantly as she added box after box of condoms into a plastic bag.

"Uh, yeah. Thanks."

"All right – that'll be $150," Sakura concluded, setting the packed bag on the counter.

_Geez… maybe I should've cut back a bit. Thank goodness I have my birthday money to spend…_

Reaching into his wallet, Naruto pulled out a debit card, which he handed to his classmate. Sakura swiped the card and handed it back before hesitating. Finally, she spoke up. "Naruto… be good to him, okay?"

Naruto was stunned. He had been expecting taunting or blackmail, but instead Sakura spoke with a hint of resignation. "What do you mean?"

"Just… promise me, okay?"

After a pause, Naruto nodded. "Yeah, sure."

"All right. Have a nice day, then," Sakura added quickly before turning her attention to the next customer, putting on a pleasant façade.

Deciding it was best not to push the subject, the blond decided to just grab his bag and leave. Though his face still burned with embarrassment, Naruto's mind was now focused on his plans for the next day – a chance to put his purchases to the test. Before then, though, he had to do some research.

_Time to crack open _Sex for Dummies_, I suppose…_

* * *

Well, there you have it! Next chapter is D-day - I warn you now that there _will_ be a lemon, so if you're not a fan of that, well... you'll be warned again. Anyway, you have that to look forward to. Also to keep in mind: how will Sasuke's conversation with Orochimaru affect him, and what about Sakura's enigmatic statement to Naruto? Until next time, folks, and remember: review!


	36. Making Love in the Afternoon

Well, here it is. The lemon you've all been waiting for (that was a warning, by the way). I know it's been a long time coming, and I appreciate your patience. Anyway, I just want to thank all of you for reading and reviewing. Now, without further ado, on with the chapter!

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36. Making Love in the Afternoon

Kakashi sat across from Iruka at Café Portabello, a small, fancy Italian restaurant in downtown Konoha. He had invited the man to dinner on a whim more than anything else. All that week he had been trying to find time to talk to his precious Umino, but with work and the craziness surrounding Gaara, they had only been able to exchange a few words. Thus, it seemed perfectly natural for them to go and have a special night, just the two of them.

Unfortunately, it was also Naruto's birthday, a fact that Kakashi had failed to realize. Iruka had made things work, though – apparently he had talked it over with Naruto, and they had decided it would be best to go out and celebrate his birthday on Saturday. After all, it was much better to have an entire day of birthday fun than just a few hours after school. That had been Iruka's reasoning, at least, and Naruto seemed to buy it, albeit a bit too readily.

_Hmm… well, I hope he and Sasuke celebrate safely, at least…_

Staring down at the plate of pasta before him, Iruka played around with it using his fork before taking a sip of his red wine. Kakashi, meanwhile, took a drink of his standard lemonade after removing his mask and smiled. "Something on your mind?"

Iruka sighed. "I just hope I didn't let Naruto down. I mean, it's his birthday, right?"

Kakashi chuckled. "I figured as much. Well, look at it this way – if you were still in Mizu, you wouldn't have been able to come for his birthday at all. I hardly think he'll be heartbroken if he has to wait one more day to celebrate."

"That's true… but you only turn sixteen once. It's a big year. Maybe I should give him a call – I can still drop by and give him a present," Iruka said as he pulled out his cell phone.

"Wait!" Kakashi exclaimed a bit too loudly, causing the brunet to look up in surprise. He quickly caught himself, though, with a nervous cough. "I'm sorry… I mean, don't do that. I'm sure he's fine – he's probably celebrating with his friends or something. It'll all work out, trust me."

Iruka reluctantly shoved his phone back into his pocket and looked up at the silver-haired man with a smile. "You're probably right."

"I _know_ I'm right."

Taking a bite of his pasta, Iruka washed it down with another sip of wine before glancing at Kakashi's semi-formal attire, with gray dress shirt and pink tie, a suit jacket resting on the back of the chair. "You look good tonight. I didn't realize you were going to dress up."

"Same goes for you," Kakashi replied, glancing at the other man's similar attire, though with more of a navy shirt and a gold tie.

"Well… I don't know, you said you were taking me to this place. It sounded fancy…"

"… he says, pretending he didn't do any research beforehand," Kakashi interrupted with a wry smile.

"I'm that predictable, huh?" Iruka asked with a sheepish laugh.

"Call it a lucky guess."

With a weak chuckle, Iruka returned to his meal for a moment, savoring the flavors of his meal while Kakashi started on his own pasta. Café Portabello truly knew how to make a good meal – Kakashi savored the various flavors before cleansing his palate with some salad. After washing it all down with some lemonade, the silver-haired man glanced back up to find Iruka watching him intently from across the table.

"Something on my face?" Kakashi asked before patting his face with a napkin.

"No, no… I was just thinking, I guess."

"About what?"

"What kind of a man he was," Iruka admitted somewhat distantly. "Obito, that is."

"Ah… gauging the competition, eh?"

"Not at all. It's just… well, he's important to you. I want to know what he was like… so I can better understand you. Does that make sense?"

Kakashi smiled as he set down his lemonade. "Yeah… it does. Let me think for a minute, here. Where do I even begin? I guess you could say Obito was belligerent, absentminded, and irresponsible sometimes, and loving, kind, and wise at others. He might forget your birthday, appropriately enough, but he'd make it up to you later by giving you the most thoughtful gift you'd ever received.

"I remember one time we got in a fight – and I don't just mean an argument. I forget how it even started – knowing us, it was probably over something stupid – and before long we came to blows. He punched me in the face and stormed out of the apartment, and I locked the door to make sure he couldn't get back in. I didn't see him again for a week – we could both be pretty stubborn back then. Of course, I got worried and wound up wandering the city at night looking for him. He'd been sleeping under this bridge in the park. As soon as he saw me, his eyes lit up. All he said, was 'I win.' He was right. I had to forgive him right then and there. We went back and patched things up."

"Sounds like he was determined."

"Oh, you have no idea. He had dreams – big dreams – and he was intent on seeing them through. I don't remember him ever letting those goals get in the way of the things that were truly important, though. Like his family – he made it a point to spend time with Sasuke and his family every week. Those boys didn't get to see their parents that often, since they were so busy running the family business. Obito did his best to fill in and help them out, though – and, of course, I came along for the ride."

"He sounds like a great guy," Iruka said warmly.

"I'll never forget him… but I can move on," Kakashi concluded, gazing at the man across the table with a soft smile. "I've found someone else I can care for."

Iruka's eyes widened. "Kakashi…"

"Look, it's starting to rain," the silver-haired teacher said abruptly, gazing out the window. "What do you say we go back to my place? You can stay the night."

"That sounds wonderful."

"Excellent, then," Kakashi replied before turning in his chair. "Check please!"

xxxxx

Sasuke sat on the stairs near the front door of the Uchiha mansion, lacing up his shoes while trying hard to ignore the butterflies in his stomach. His talk with O had been helpful, but it didn't change the fact that, in just a few hours, he would be going all the way with his boyfriend. He and Naruto. Having sex. It seemed so very odd to think about – exciting, nerve-racking, just… weird. Overall, though, it was good. At least, that's what Sasuke kept telling himself – that this would be beneficial to him. That it would help him move forward and leave the old Sasuke in the past.

_I can't just keep stalling. It's not fair to Naruto. Even if I'm not ready, I'll just have to suck it up. I've spent the past five years living alone… I can't do that anymore…_

"Going somewhere, Sasuke?"

Glancing up, the younger Uchiha found his brother standing in the entryway to the kitchen, dressed in an Akatsuki executive bathrobe with red clouds, a cup of coffee in his hand. At first, Sasuke considered just ignoring Itachi, thinking he was just going to torment him again. When he met his brother's eyes, though, Sasuke saw something unsettling: sincerity.

"Umm… I'm just going to Naruto's for the night. It's his birthday," Sasuke explained, finishing the knot on one of his shoes.

"I see. You'll be back in the morning, then?" Itachi asked concernedly. His eyes looked particularly sunken, as if he hadn't slept in days.

_Must've been a busy day at work…_

"Yeah – it's a sleepover. We're going to watch a few movies, play some videogames," Sasuke lied as he finished the other knot.

"I see. Just be safe," Itachi replied, though not teasingly as Sasuke had expected. It was more like the elder Uchiha was trying to be helpful. "He's a good kid, Sasuke. You're lucky to have him."

"Umm… thanks, I guess?" the raven-haired teen said, rising to his feet. "I'll call if I'm going to be later than I expected."

"No need for that, Sasuke. I trust you," Itachi said, following his brother to the door. There was a moment of silence as Sasuke opened the door and stepped outside – the clouds were forming overhead. "Sure has been rainy lately."

"That's fall for you."

"Did you bring an umbrella?"

"I won't need one."

"I see," Itachi said dumbly as Sasuke started down the path leading to the driveway. After a moment, he finally spoke up. "Sasuke… you know I care about you, right?"

"Don't say that!" the young Uchiha snapped, his head spinning to glare at his brother. "Don't you _ever_ say that! If you cared about me, you would've been there for me after Mom and Dad died. Instead, I lost my brother that night as well."

Itachi nodded with a soft smile. "Even if you don't believe me, Sasuke… I do love you."

"Go to hell," Sasuke concluded before storming down the driveway. Still, he could just hear his brother's voice in the distance, getting in the last word as usual.

"Goodbye, Sasuke."

The young Uchiha shuddered, but didn't bother to so much as turn to look at Itachi. He had better things to worry about than hurting his brother's feelings, after all – this night was all about him and Naruto, and he was determined to make it turn out perfectly.

It took Sasuke twenty minutes to walk to Naruto's apartment complex, where he started up the stairs to the blond's door. After a few minutes, Kiba opened the door, greeting the Uchiha with a grin.

"There you are. We've been waiting for you," Kiba said, Akamaru yipping at his feet. "Naruto insisted that you be here for cake."

"Sorry… I didn't realize I was holding everyone up," Sasuke apologized as he kicked off his shoes.

"Not everyone – just us," the dog-boy corrected, leading the guest to the kitchen. "Lee's visiting Gaara in the hospital, and Shikamaru's going out with Temari – she needs the attention after what happens. And of course Choji's not going to come without Shikamaru, so… yeah, it's just us three today."

"Geez… I guess it _has_ been a pretty crazy week," the Uchiha said, scratching his head awkwardly. "Well, I make up for all of them, I guess."

"That's right!"

Having just stepped into the kitchenette, Sasuke was surprised to hear Naruto's voice, as he hadn't seen the blond bending down to get something out of the oven. When he finally stood back up and faced his boyfriend, Naruto was holding a tray with six cupcakes, a broad smile crossing his face.

"You're cooking your own cake?" Sasuke asked in bemusement.

"Of course! Only I know how I like it," Naruto replied as he set the tray down on top of the oven. "Don't worry – I'll let you have one, too."

"You're a class act," the Uchiha replied with a smirk as he plopped down in a chair. Naruto soon joined him, while Kiba walked over to the tray to finish preparing the cupcakes.

"I thought only you knew how you liked them?" Sasuke said with a raised eyebrow as he watched Kiba struggle to frost the dessert.

"Well, I can't do _everything_," the blond said, rolling his eyes. "Otherwise there's no surprise."

"All right! Lights out!" Kiba ordered, glancing over his shoulder at the switch by Naruto's shoulder.

Once the room was dark, the Inuzuka turned around, carrying a plate of cupcakes in both hands. The center treat had a single candle protruding from the center, its flame wavering with every step Kiba took. Soon, the plate was lying before a bright-eyed Naruto while Kiba took a seat, a barking Akamaru hopping into his lap.

"And a 1, a 2, a 1, 2, 3!" Kiba began, pantomiming a conductor, at which point he and Sasuke began singing in unison, with Akamaru barking in backup vocals.

"Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday dear Naruto! Happy Birthday to~ you~!"

"And many more~!" Kiba concluded in a dramatic fashion as Naruto blew out the candle to his friends' cheers.

With the flame extinguished, Naruto flicked the lights back on and proceeded to remove the candle from the cupcake, shoving the treat into his mouth almost immediately. Chocolate smeared on the tip of his nose, the blond licked his lips and grinned at his astonished friends. "Well? Aren't you going to eat yours?"

Staring at each other momentarily, Kiba and Sasuke quickly snatched two cupcakes from the tray while Naruto grabbed another for himself. Within just a few minutes, all that remained of their dessert were a few crumbs scattered across the floor, which Akamaru proceeded to greedily lick up.

"That was great! Thanks, Naruto!" Kiba exclaimed, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand as he rose from his chair. "So, what should we do now? Watch a movie? Play some games?"

Sasuke and Naruto exchanged furtive glances, neither one knowing what exactly to say. Kiba was one obstacle to their plans that they hadn't prepared for. Finally, Naruto answered with a forced smile. "S-sure… that sounds great…"

"All right! I'll get the controllers all ready, I guess," Kiba said as he stepped out of the kitchen and into the living room.

Kiba did not go far, however, before he spied the corner of a large, yellow book poking out from beneath the couch. A closer look revealed the title – _Sex for Dummies_. Looking back over his shoulder at Naruto and Sasuke, the dog-boy considered the evidence before him before turning back to the book with a smile. "You know what, I take it back. I think I'll take Akamaru to go pay Choji a visit. I'm sure he's getting pretty lonely over there without Shikamaru around."

"Umm… okay, I guess. Have fun," Naruto responded, cocking his head to the side confusedly.

"Yeah – you too," Kiba concluded with a chuckle as he and Akamaru headed out the door, sealing it shut behind them.

The teenaged couple sat at the table in silence for a time, avoiding eye contact with the other as they pretended to hum distractedly. Finally, Naruto feigned a cough and turned to the Uchiha with a somewhat embarrassed expression.

"So… shall we?"

"Are you ready?"

"I guess so… are you?"

"If you are," Sasuke replied in an attempt to sound cool.

"Well, should we just start right here?" Naruto asked, scanning the kitchen.

"Umm… maybe your room would be a better idea. We wouldn't want Kiba barging in on us."

"Or my dad, for that matter," the blond said with a sigh.

"Good point," Sasuke concurred with a nod.

After waiting for a moment for the other to take the initiative, the two teens rose from their chairs and headed for Naruto's bedroom. As they walked down the hallway, neither said a word, but simply fidgeted nervously – pulling at their shirt collars, scratching their arms, gulping almost audibly. Once they reached their destination, the situation did not become much easier, as they simply stood in front of the locked door and stared at each other.

"Umm… how do you want to do this?" Sasuke asked with a blush.

"What do you mean?" Naruto asked with a look of befuddlement

"Well… like… positions?"

"Oh, I see," the blond replied, turning a similar shade of red. "Do you know what you're doing at all?"

"I… didn't think to prepare."

"That's okay – I've done some research," Naruto said with a hint of pride. "I'll be on top then, I guess. It's dangerous if you don't know what you're doing."

"So… I don't have to do anything?" Sasuke asked, ashamed by his apparent ignorance on the subject compared to Naruto.

"I'll help you through it. Just follow my lead, all right?" the vulpine boy offered comfortingly, placing a hand on his boyfriend's shoulder.

With that, the duo proceeded to undress each other, albeit with less grace than they would have liked. Even though they had plenty of experience in helping the other out of his clothes, the prospect of the task at hand somehow made even the simplest tasks seem impossibly difficult. Sasuke's black shirt got stuck halfway over his head, for example, while Naruto's orange pants stopped around his shoes, which he had neglected to take off. Soon, both teens found themselves tumbling half-naked to the ground, where they both struggled to get back up.

By the time they were standing face to face once more, Naruto had lost his tangled pants, while Sasuke had freed himself of his shirt, leaving them both in their underwear. Feeling this was something they could handle at the very least, they proceeded to slide these last articles down the other's legs. Soon, Naruto's dark green boxers were added to the pile, while Sasuke's blue boxerbriefs were lying around his ankles.

Stepping out of this last article of clothing, Sasuke fell back onto Naruto's bed, with the blond lying on top of him, embracing his boyfriend tightly. After planting a quick kiss on the Uchiha's lips, Naruto pulled back with a playful smile.

"There… that's much better."

"Sorry about that, by the way," Sasuke said with an awkward laugh. "I guess I'm a little nervous is all…"

"Same here," Naruto admitted sheepishly.

It was then that Sasuke noticed the blond's arm quivering beside his head, almost as if it was struggling to support Naruto's body. For some strange reason, it actually eased the raven-haired teen's nerves, knowing he wasn't the only one with a bit of performance anxiety.

"Well, you shouldn't be," Sasuke assured his boyfriend, running a hand down the blond's backside. "You've never let me down before."

"I just hope I can keep it that way," Naruto concluded before the smirk returned to his face. "I suppose I'll never know unless I try."

"That's the spir–"

Sasuke's words were cut off as Naruto moved in for a kiss, sucking gently on the Uchiha's lips. Soon, the two teens parted their lips in near unison, allowing their tongues to meet, exploring the other's mouth in bliss. Not wanting to dwell on this too long, however, Naruto soon withdrew his tongue and moved down the Uchiha's body, sucking on his treasured nipples while his hands traveled even lower.

His eyes widened, Sasuke let out a small gasp as Naruto's hands reached their target, wrapping around the desired member, where it gently stroked up and down. Realizing the blond's intention, the Uchiha allowed his own hands to do some exploring, on clamping down on his boyfriend's butt while the other moved around to the opposite side to match Naruto's movements.

"Is that…?"

"Yeah… just right…" Naruto replied, barely moving his mouth from Sasuke's nipple before returning to his suckling.

They continued in this manner for a minute or so, their bodies starting to gyrate rhythmically as time progressed. Just when they seemed to be getting into a groove, however, Naruto suddenly backed away abruptly as he slid off his boyfriend, both now sufficiently aroused.

"Wait!" the blond exclaimed, crawling off the bed with a look of determination. After fumbling around underneath the bed for a moment, he pulled forth a bag, whose contents he proceeded to dump on the floor.

Sasuke stared at the pile in confusion. There were probably a dozen boxes of condoms in total, along with a bottle of Astroglide, which Naruto proceeded to sort through hastily. "All right," the blond said, sitting cross-legged as he picked up a few boxes, "do you know anything about size?"

"That's… wow. How much did you spend on that?" Sasuke asked, struggling to ignore his frustrating erection as he eyed the boxes in awe.

"That's not important," Naruto asked as he examined a bright yellow box intently. "What size do you think you'd use?"

"Do… do I need one? If I'm… well… on bottom?"

"No – I just mean for comparison," the blond said, looking back and forth between his equipment and Sasuke's. "I think we're pretty close…"

"Well… I don't know! Just try one!" Sasuke stammered, glancing at the purple box in his boyfriend's hands. "And probably not the 'Her Pleasure' ones."

Contorting his face in irritation, Naruto tossed the purple box over his shoulder and picked up another yellowish one. He opened it up, dumping several shiny packets on the floor, and picked one. After struggling just to open the packet, he pulled forth the condom, eyeing it curiously.

"So… the book said I just kind of pull it over…" Naruto said, his hands shaking nervously as he stretched the latex over his tackle. After just a short distance, though, his fingers slipped, sending the condom flying across the room, where it landed on the blond's desk.

"Too small?" Sasuke asked, impressed by how far the rubber flew.

"Too slippery," Naruto replied as he pulled open another box. These were red, reading 'non-lubricated.' "Maybe this one…"

Opening up the wrapper, Naruto gave it another try, only to find that the condom did not want to slide on very easily. Realizing his mistake, he reached over for the Astroglide and opened it up, pouring a liberal amount of lubricant into the palm of his hand. After applying it to the desired area, with more of the clear substance dripping down his legs and onto the floor, Naruto gave the condom another try. This time, he actually managed to get it on, though it took him a few tries.

"There!" Naruto said with pride as he climbed back onto the bed. He opened up the Astroglide and gave Sasuke a smirk. "Now it's your turn."

"What are you talking about?" Sasuke asked, watching his boyfriend warily as he poured the lube into his hand, forming a large puddle in his palm.

"The book said it would hurt like hell if you didn't use lube," Naruto said, glancing between the Uchiha's legs. "You know… down there."

"You mean my ass?" Sasuke asked, clearly not enthused by the idea. "Won't it burn?"

"It's _warming_. It's supposed to feel good. It didn't hurt when I put it on, how about that?" Naruto said reassuringly as he straddled the Uchiha's legs. "Now, roll over. I'll rub it in for you."

Still uncertain about the whole idea, Sasuke reluctantly rolled onto his stomach, painfully aware that Naruto was staring right at his butt. Soon, he felt his boyfriend's hands meet his skin, the lubricant slapping against his skin before running down his sides and onto the sheets.

"You ready?" Naruto asked, leaning to the side to look Sasuke in the face.

"As ready as I'll ever be," the Uchiha muttered with a sigh.

With that, the blond began to work the lube in, rubbing it into Sasuke's butt in a manner that even _he_ was sure wasn't right. From his lower back to the upper part of his thighs, Sasuke could feel the oily substance spreading. What was most obvious, though, was the right location – that sensitive area where he and Naruto would join together.

_Naruto was right… it _does_ feel good…_

"How's that?" Naruto asked after hearing his boyfriend moan slightly.

"Well, I usually use a couple of bottles myself. This is fine, though," Sasuke replied, glancing over his shoulder with a playful smile.

"Why don't you turn over, then? We can pick up where we left off."

Rolling onto his back once more, Sasuke found himself staring up at Naruto, his nervousness mounting. His breathing sped up, though he attempted to mask his anxiety as best as he could. This all proved to be unnecessary, though, for as soon as Naruto planted another kiss on the Uchiha, his worries seemed to melt away.

_It's okay… it's Naruto… I'll be fine…_

Thus, closing his eyes, Sasuke left his mind at ease and focused on the blond, enjoying the feeling of Naruto's lean body against his own, breathing in his distinct musk, and savoring the flavors of his lips. All the while, Sasuke's hand slid around to Naruto's butt once more, while his other remained on his equipment. When Naruto's hand began to move as well, the Uchiha took notice, tracking the vulpine boy's fingers on his skin as they traveled lower and lower, until they stopped between his legs.

"I'm going to put one in. Is that okay?" Naruto asked, hovering just above the Uchiha's face.

"Umm… I guess so. Sure," Sasuke asked, not quite understanding the blond's proposition.

He understood soon enough, for soon one of the fingers Sasuke had been tracking slid inside, causing his eyes to pop wide open. He inhaled deeply, but kept on kissing despite his surprise. It was certainly a sensation he hadn't been expecting, though he couldn't say it felt bad. After all, it was just a finger – it didn't hurt or anything. It was just weird, but in a good way.

As they continued to kiss, Naruto gently slid his finger back and forth, almost as if he was tickling Sasuke's insides. Again, as strange as the feeling was, Sasuke couldn't help but let out another moan of pleasure before taking a deep breath.

"You all right?"

"Yeah… that's great," Sasuke said, massaging his boyfriend's butt with his hand.

"Okay… I'm going to try another one," Naruto warned, moving down the Uchiha's body a bit. "Just try to relax, okay?"

As Naruto began to suck on Sasuke's belly button, he added his middle finger to the equation, causing the raven-haired teen to inhale sharply. The first one had gone in with ease – number 2 was a bit harder than he'd expect. He found himself clenching up involuntarily, which caused Naruto to poke his head up once more.

"You have to relax, Sasuke."

"Sorry… it's easier said than done," the Uchiha said, furrowing his brow in focus as he tried to calm his muscles. He placed his free hand to his forehead, now that Naruto's rear end was out of reach, and closed his eyes.

After a moment or two, he felt the fingers slide in, pressing up against the side as they gently moved back and forth. He let out a sound that seemed to come half from pleasure, half surprise, but remained focused on staying relaxed. As his boyfriend kept at work with his fingers, Sasuke felt himself loosen up, so that his shock dwindled, leaving mostly a feeling of ecstasy at the sensation.

"This was all in the book?" Sasuke asked before letting out another moan.

"Yeah – they say it's good preparation," Naruto said, sticking out his tongue in concentration as he moved his fingers along.

"You have to remind me to borrow that sometime…"

"I take it you're liking it, then?" the blond asked with a grin. "Does that mean you're ready for the real deal?"

"Quit teasing me already! Let's just do it," the Uchiha said, his lust for his boyfriend reaching a peak.

Not needing to be told twice, Naruto climbed back on top of Sasuke, straddling the teen as he removed his lube-covered fingers. After rubbing a bit more of the Astroglide on his erection, he leaned his head forward and met Sasuke's lips. Then, with Sasuke sufficiently distracted, he gently pushed forward, just barely poking inside.

"Relax," Naruto whispered soothingly as Sasuke immediately tightened up.

Though Sasuke managed to keep his eyes shut as he tried to focus on kissing his beloved blond, it was much more difficult to do so than with the fingers. After all, fingers were short and actually somewhat flexible. Naruto's hard-on was neither.

Still, after a time, Sasuke managed to relax enough for Naruto to get about halfway in before he seized up again. The length was now an issue, as he could feel the blond pressing in deeper than he had expected – and it wasn't even all the way in.

"I'm sorry, it's just…"

"Take your time," Naruto said, moving away from the Uchiha's lips to plant a kiss beneath his jaw, where he suckled the sensitive skin.

This sudden change in sensations distracted Sasuke enough that he managed to relax, allowing Naruto gently slide in. The Uchiha found himself breathing rapidly again, this time almost entirely out of pain. Just the sheer pressure from Naruto's equipment was enough to make Sasuke feel as if he was being torn in half. It was agonizing – but it felt _so_ good, too.

"Are you okay? Should I stop?"

"Don't you dare!" Sasuke answered quickly between hurried breaths. "It'll be better if we just do it now – since you're already in."

"Okay – I'm gonna start, then," Naruto said, taking a deep breath.

If the pressure from Naruto's erection was bad, then the friction from his movement back and forth was far, far worse. Even with the copious amounts of lube that they used, the Uchiha found that his first experience could be summed up quite succinctly – it hurt like _hell_. Still, the experience was truly wonderful. With the blond's first thrust forward, the Uchiha felt a wave of pleasure unlike anything he'd ever felt before. He even stopped sliding his hand up and down himself as his entire body was overcome with the sensation.

"Oh… you're so tight.…" Naruto moaned, closing one eye as he thrust forward again.

"Tell me about it," Sasuke muttered before gasping in wonderful pain.

After about a minute of slow, rhythmic movement, Naruto and Sasuke were both hot and sweaty, the stains from their drippings mixing in with those from the lube. It was then that Naruto began to move faster, though not drastically so – just enough for Sasuke to suddenly feel another wave of pleasure combined with sharp pains. In a way, it was a lot like what they had done at Lake Konoha. The only difference was the degree of the friction, the discomfort, and the lust – the last of which trumped them all.

"Harder," Sasuke moaned, tears running from his eyes from the stinging sensation inside.

Naruto followed orders perfectly, picking up the pace as he slid in and out. Soon, they were both gasping for breath, their sweat blending with each others, forming small pools on Sasuke's body. Then, suddenly, Naruto let out a final moan and paused, his eyes closed as his entire body seemed to shudder.

For a moment, he was silent save for his hurried breaths. As he began to calm down, though, he looked down at Sasuke with a sheepish smile.

"Umm… sorry…" the blond said as he slid out from the Uchiha. He glanced down at Sasuke's own erection for a moment before adding. "Here, let me help you with that."

With Naruto's hand rubbing up and down, it wasn't long before Sasuke moaned as well, his hips bucking as he let out a blissful moan, a few shimmering strands of love mixing with the sweat and lube.

They were silent, each breathing heavily in exhaustion as they stared into each other's eyes. No words were needed – everything they were thinking was perfectly clear. At least, that's what Sasuke felt. It had been awkward. Painful. Physically draining. And, most of all, amazing. The Uchiha let out a sigh.

"Naruto."

"Yes?"

"Happy birthday."

* * *

Well, there you have it. How was it? Was it good for you, too? Anyway, I'll leave it up to you to guess where the story goes from here - no hints from me, this time! Thank you for reading, and remember - review!


	37. Where Have You Gone, Sasuke Uchiha?

I apologize for the lateness of this chapter. It's exam week for me, so I've had trouble finding the time to write. But, anyway, here it is! Thank you for your patience and for reading/reviewing. Now, without further ado, on with the chapter!

* * *

37. Where Have You Gone, Sasuke Uchiha?

_I did it._

These were the words repeating over and over in Sasuke's head as he lay in bed, Naruto's arm draped across his chest. Indeed, he had done it. He'd told himself he was going to do it, and he'd _done_ it. He'd had sex with Naruto. It was weird, painful, and wonderful, but more than anything else, it was _frightening._

Of course, that fear wasn't there right away. After they'd finished, he and Naruto had simply lain in bed, feeling relaxed in content. Then, a few minutes later, Naruto had suggested they wash up, which they did, showering together while firmly embracing each other.

Once they returned to bed, however, Sasuke's mind began to wander. Naruto was apparently oblivious, as he fell asleep soon after, leaving Sasuke to his thoughts. He wasn't even sure how long he had been lying awake, staring up at the ceiling. When he tried to catch a glimpse of the clock, he found a pair of Naruto's boxers draped over it, obscuring the numbers. All he knew was that, at some point, he heard Kiba return, with Akamaru's yips accompanying the sound of the door clamping shut. For all Sasuke knew, though, that had been an hour ago.

_I… I love him. How could I let myself fall for him like this? I've grown attached to him… I can't even imagine life without him. I knew this would happen… why didn't I just leave him when I had the chance?_

Just the thought made Sasuke's heart race and caused cold sweat to run down his face. This was real. He couldn't just ignore these feelings, and he couldn't delay acting on them any longer. Something had to be done. But what?

As far as he could tell, there was nothing he could do. He was too close to Naruto now – he couldn't just call the whole thing off. At the same time, though, the fear of what could happen was overwhelming. Visions of his parents lying dead on the floor kept popping back up in his head. He felt like he was going to pass out as his heart beat faster and his palms grew sweaty.

_I need to get away… just for a while. I need to think this over…_

Slowly and carefully, Sasuke moved Naruto's hand off of his chest and slid out from under the covers. It was only after his feet touched the ground that he noticed the pain in his backside – apparently losing your virginity hurt like _hell_. Though it was relatively dull right then, Sasuke knew perfectly well that he'd barely be able to walk by morning. After stumbling around briefly in the dark, he found his clothes and got dressed as quietly as possible before slipping out of Naruto's room, gently sealing the door shut behind him.

Tiptoeing down the hall, Sasuke cringed as the floorboards creaked, pausing at the slightest sound lest he wake either Naruto or Kiba. It was only when the Uchiha reached the front door, however, that he realized that he'd overlooked something, for curled up in a ball on the floor was Akamaru. Though Sasuke tried to get by the puppy without waking it, he knew it was useless. No sooner had he placed a hand on the door than he heard Akamaru whimper, at which point Sasuke sighed and knelt down.

"It's okay, little guy – I'm just heading out for a bit. Need some fresh air," Sasuke said, patting the dog on the head and scratching it just below the chin. "I'll be back, okay?"

Seeming to understand, Akamaru bobbed its head and curled back up into a ball, allowing Sasuke to step outside silently. It was only then that Sasuke realized what, by all means, he should have before – it was pouring. Deciding it was too late to turn back now, the Uchiha took off running, the rain matting down his raven hair as he darted down the stairs and into the apartment complex's parking lot.

_Good thing Akamaru kept quiet… I don't want to have to explain to Naruto why I'm leaving in the middle of the night like this._

Waiting at an intersection, Sasuke smiled to himself. He could remember the first time he'd met Akamaru – he still had the faint scar on his hand where he'd been bitten. Apparently the dog had grown used to Sasuke, though – like he was part of the family. It wrenched his heart, in a way, knowing that it was just that kind of connection that made Sasuke worried the most. Family. Friendship. Love. They were all great while they lasted, but they were so fragile. Anything could come along and split it apart – an accident, a change of heart. And that was the worst part of it: the knowledge that those wonderful feelings could be lost forever. That Sasuke might wake up tomorrow to find Naruto gone – never to feel his embrace again, to see his smile, to run his hands through his sunshine hair.

Sasuke shivered. He wasn't sure if it was just from the cold rain beating against his skin.

The light changed, and Sasuke ran forward, his feet splashing through the growing puddles as he ran to nowhere in particular. He wasn't even conscious of the turns he was making – his body was taking him of its own volition, while his mind struggled to grasp his new realization.

_Love… why does it have to be so damn difficult?_

When Sasuke finally stopped, he stared in momentary confusion at where his body had decided to take him. Something about it seemed familiar, but the swirling thoughts in his mind forced him to consider it for a moment. Then it hit him – Kakashi's apartment. Naturally, Sasuke would come to one of the few people he trusted to discuss his dilemma. Shikamaru was unavailable – he'd heard what Kiba said about him having to console Temari – so Kakashi was the next logical choice.

Rushing up to the door, the Uchiha rang the bell and waited, his clothes sopping wet. Though he was still horribly overwhelmed, there was a hint of anticipation in the teen's eyes as the door swung open. Kakashi would know what to do. Kakashi would help.

"Sasuke? What are you doing out here so late?"

Sasuke simply stared up at the teacher, his anticipation giving way to horror. He wasn't sure why, but something about the look in Kakashi's eye told him that something was wrong. Kakashi was _different_. Yes, he wasn't wearing his mask, but Sasuke wasn't particularly horrified by that. He had seen his face before, albeit rarely. It wasn't even that Kakashi had answered the door in his boxers, or that he reeked of sweat and pleasure.

No – the problem was that Kakashi was _happy._ Not the fake happiness that he wore like his trademark mask on a day-to-day basis, but genuine happiness – the kind Sasuke used to see in him when Obito was still alive. Kakashi had met someone. He'd changed.

What was worse, though, was how that someone was. At first Sasuke only saw it out of the corner of his eye, but as the nearly-naked brunet stumbled forward, planting an intoxicated kiss on Kakashi's cheek, there was no mistaking it.

"I-Iruka?" he exclaimed, barely even acknowledging Kakashi's question.

Iruka glanced down at teen, bleary-eyed. "Sasuke? What izzit? Di' you 'ave a bad dream? Ha ha ha…"

"Sasuke, it's not what it looks like," Kakashi said hurriedly, seeing the spark of realization in the teen's eye.

"You mean the two of you… but… he's Naruto's…" Sasuke stammered, backing away from the door in disgust.

"Sasuke! Wait!" Kakashi exclaimed as the Uchiha darted down the path to the stairs, disappearing into the growing storm.

Of course, Sasuke paid no heed to the teacher's protestations. He'd seen enough to come to his own decision. To think that Kakashi would be involved with Naruto's dad. Yes, they weren't _technically _related, but Sasuke viewed Kakashi as a sort of father figure – not an ideal father figure, but the best father figure that he had – and to think that he was dating Iruka just made Sasuke shudder. It was like the most convoluted form of incest he'd ever seen.

_This is too much… too much happening at once. First love, now family?_

Family seemed to be what Sasuke's brain latched onto, for he soon found himself standing outside the Uchiha mansion, following another ten minute run through the rain. Again, though his hopes of refuge were dashed immediately by the sight of red and blue lights, accompanied by the wail of sirens.

"Sasuke Uchiha! There you are!"

Turning around, Sasuke found himself staring into the eyes of a familiar, white-haired police officer, who appeared to be all business on this particular night. "Officer Jiraiya? What's going on here? Where's Itachi?"

"I'm afraid Itachi's been arrested, Sasuke," Jiraiya admitted gravely.

"What for?" the younger Uchiha asked, noting the seriousness in the officer's eyes.

"For the murder of Fugaku and Mikoto Uchiha."

Sasuke stared up at Jiraiya in disbelief, his blood running cold. "You mean… Mom and Dad?"

Jiraiya nodded slowly. "I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news. We'll need you to come down to the station to answer a few questions as well."

"No! That… that can't be!" Sasuke exclaimed, clutching his throbbing head in dismay. "He couldn't have…"

The more Sasuke thought about it, though, the more it made sense. The way Itachi seemed so relaxed after they died. The fact that he hadn't shed a tear – not one – at their funeral. Sasuke had thought he was just hiding his emotions, trying to remain strong, or that he was just a cold bastard. Never before had he pegged his own brother as a murderer, though.

"Where is he?" the teen asked abruptly, catching Jiraiya momentarily off guard.

"Oh, he's in the back of that squad car there. Of course, I can't let you talk to him – not until we've taken him downtown."

Sasuke didn't want to talk to Itachi, though. He only wanted to look at him – to see if there was any sign of guilt in his brother's eyes. Even from across the yard, Sasuke could just make out Itachi's red eyes in the dark. They were staring right at him. The sight made Sasuke's skin tingle while his heart sank.

It was worse than he'd feared. There was no guilt in Itachi's eyes – for a moment, Sasuke thought that was a good thing. That maybe, just maybe, Jiraiya had the wrong man. After just a moment, though, Sasuke realized that there was no emotion whatsoever in Itachi's eyes. No betrayal. No fear. No sorrow. No anger. Just acceptance – as if he had been waiting years for this moment: his inevitable arrest.

Sasuke wanted to vomit.

"Now, Sasuke, if you just want to come along with me…" Jiraiya began, eyeing the elder Uchiha in the squad car with a combination of pity and disgust. When he turned around, though, he discovered that Sasuke was long gone, having darted off once more into the rain. "Hey! Somebody stop him!"

As Sasuke sprinted through the pouring rain, the footsteps of shouting police officers following not far behind, his mind raced in panic. He couldn't deal with all of this. Love, family, murder, betrayal – it was all too much.

_I have to get away… anywhere, I don't care. I just need to get away from all this…_

Emerging from the neighborhood, Sasuke continued down the sidewalk for a moment before darting across the street, cars blaring their horns as they screeched to halt, narrowly avoiding the frantic Uchiha. Moments later, he darted down an alleyway and hid behind a dumpster, not even daring to breathe as he listened to his pursuers dart past. It was then, sitting in a puddle in the middle of grungy alley, that Sasuke had an idea. He pulled out his cell, dialed the familiar number, and waited.

"Hello?"

"Hey, O," Sasuke said, almost crying in relief. "Do you guys have room for one more?"

xxxxx

Sakura Haruna sat on her front porch that night, staring out at the storm in depression. She had tried to get to sleep – she knew she'd need the beauty rest – but somehow it didn't seem worthwhile. After all, no matter how pretty she tried to be, no matter how she dressed or how she wore her hair, it wouldn't make Sasuke notice her. He hated her. It was as simple as that.

Still, when the girl saw the raven-haired teen strolling past her house, his clothes soaked, she felt her heart jump in hope. Maybe he'd come to confess his undying love for her? It was crazy, but Sakura wasn't going to let that kind of reasoning stop her from saying something.

"Sasuke? What are you doing out here so late?" she asked, leaning against a wooden post, the rain just barely falling on her toes.

Much to her surprise, Sasuke didn't simply walk by, pretending not to notice his classmate. Instead, he stopped, staring straight forward, before turning slowly towards the girl. As if that wasn't strange enough, Sakura found him laughing.

"Going for a stroll. Great night for it, isn't it?"

"I don't understand… why? Look at you! You're soaked!" the pink-haired girl replied, her voice heavy with concern.

Sasuke considered it for a moment and gazed upward, the rain running down his face as he chuckled. "I'm leaving, Sakura. I have to get away from here."

Sakura's eyes widened. "What do you mean? Leaving school?"

Sasuke shook his head. "No. Konoha."

As the Uchiha started up the stairs to Sakura's porch, the girl tried to fathom what had brought around this sudden change. "But… how? Where will you go?"

"Suna – a friend of mine's heading there this weekend. I just need to escape from all of this, you know?" Sasuke continued, plopping down on the porch swing.

"Well… when is he leaving? Are you even bringing anything with you? Where's your suitcase?"

"This is sort of a last minute decision," he confessed, swinging back and forth with an odd sort of nonchalance. It was almost as if he was numb – like he was hiding something big, and trying his best to laugh it all. Sakura found it unsettling. "We're not supposed to leave for another hour or so."

"Well… maybe you should come inside. You can dry off, and maybe I can find you an umbrella," Sakura said, opening the door for the Uchiha. "You'll get sick running around in wet clothes all day."

Without a word, Sasuke nodded and rose from the swing, following the pink-haired girl inside. Sakura led him down to the laundry room, where she opened the dryer and turned to the teen, blushing slightly. "Well… are you going to hand them over, or what?"

"Hand what over?"

"Your clothes," Sakura replied, her blush deepening.

With a shrug, Sasuke proceed to peel off the saturated clothes, stripping off his sticky black shirt first, then his socks and black pants, removing his wallet and cell phone in the process. Trying to keep her eyes above waist level, Sakura took the clothes and tossed them into the dryer before turning it on. It was only after turning again that both she and Sasuke noticed the last article of clothing he had on – bright orange boxerbriefs.

Sasuke stared down at them and, for the first time, showed a sign of emotion: embarrassment. He ran a hand down his face before climbing on top of the washer. "I appreciate this."

"It's fine, really," Sakura said, taking another glance at the orange clothing. She knew as well as he did whose underwear they were, so there was no point in avoiding the inevitable topic. "So… did you and Naruto have a fight or something? Is that why you're leaving?"

"No. We had sex," Sasuke confessed with unusual nonchalance. It caught Sakura completely off guard. "Don't act so surprised – you knew about us after all, didn't you?"

Sakura rubbed her bare arms nervously, suddenly wishing she had picked something besides her short-sleeved red blouse. "To tell you the truth… I didn't see anything that day."

Sasuke seemed unfazed. "You probably had your suspicions, though. That accusation didn't come out of nowhere, I'm sure."

"I guess you're right…" the pink-haired girl responded, shifting her feet awkwardly. "I guess I kind of knew what you and Naruto were planning. He came into the store the other day to buy supplies."

"So many condoms," the Uchiha chuckled as he shook his head.

"Do you mind if I ask why you're leaving, then? Like, what went wrong?"

"Nothing. Nothing at all," Sasuke sighed. "He was wonderful."

Sakura's face scrunched up in confusion. "Then what's the problem?"

"I just need some time to think, I suppose. It's been a rough day." Sasuke confessed, furrowing his brow in apparent frustration. "Well, I've answered your question. Now, it's your turn: why didn't you tell everyone about me and Naruto?"

"You really want to know?" Sakura asked, shooting the other teen a glance. Sasuke's steady expression was a clear enough answer. She sighed. "The truth is… I just couldn't do it, Sasuke. After you humiliated me in the cafeteria the other day, I wanted to blurt it out. I wanted to tell everyone about you and Naruto, but… I knew it would hurt you."

"So what? That didn't stop you from trying to split me and Naruto up."

"I know… but, I guess I thought you'd be happier with me. I'd convinced myself of that somehow – that you were just confused, and that you couldn't bring yourself to reveal your true feelings to me," Sakura said, her cheeks burning with embarrassment. "I know it's stupid, but I was desperate. When you shot me down like that, though, I knew it was pointless for me to hope. Logically, that is. You can't tell your heart not to love someone, though. It doesn't like to listen."

"Do you mean…?"

Sakura nodded. "I loved you too much to hurt you, even though I knew you'd never love me in return. I'm just sorry I ever interfered."

The dryer buzzed. The two teens stared at it for a moment before Sasuke turned his attention back on the pink-haired girl. "Well… I guess it's time for me to get going."

"Right," Sakura said as she opened the dryer, pulling out the toasty clothes for the Uchiha. As he got dressed, she worked up the courage to ask a final question. "Sasuke… just one last thing."

"Yeah?"

"Why did you tell me all of this? Like, where you're going, why you're leaving…"

As he slipped on his shirt, Sasuke considered this, his lips curling into a smile. "I don't know. Maybe it's because you _didn't_ tell anyone about me and Naruto. I needed someone I could trust… at lest for a while. Consider it a test."

Sakura's heart jumped. "Then… you _don't_ hate me?"

Heading up the stairs, Sasuke ignored the girl's question until they arrived at the door. It was then that he remembered why he had come inside in the first place – the storm outside was still raging. "Sorry, did you say you had an umbrella I could use?"

"Oh, right, of course," the pink-haired girl replied, clinging to the lingering hope that Sasuke might still actually _like_ her. After rummaging around in the closet for a moment, she drew forth a black umbrella, which she handed to the other teen. "There you go – it's a little old, but it should do the trick."

"You'll make someone very happy someday, Sakura – just not me. I'm sorry." Opening the umbrella, Sasuke stepped out onto the porch and into the storm. As the rain beat down on the umbrella, though, he turned to the girl and smiled. "Oh, and Sakura – thank you."

Feeling a brief pang in her heart, Sakura nodded and watched the boy of her dreams disappear into the darkness. It hurt, knowing she would never be able to have him, but at the same time, she now knew, at the very least, that he thought she was a good person. He liked her, just not in the same way she liked him. And, oddly enough, that was all she needed.

xxxxx

"Are you sure about this, Sasuke?"

"It's like I told you on the phone – I have to get away from here. At least for a little while."

"Well, we're more than happy to have you. You'll have to bunk with me at the hotel, of course. Hope that's okay?"

"It's fine. I can't expect you to change your arrangements at the last minute, O."

"Very well – then hop aboard the Sound Village Express."

Taking a deep breath, Sasuke stepped onboard the old VW van with O, Kabuto, Tayuya, and Kidomaru. This was what he needed. Even if it was only temporary, he needed this escape. He only hoped Sakura could keep a secret for more than a day or two. As the van rolled out of the gas station and down the highway, however, this concern slipped from the Uchiha's mind. It had been a long night, and soon he slipped off into a troubled sleep.

* * *

Well, there you have it. Sorry it's a bit shorter this time, but this sets up the coming events, as I'm sure you've probably guessed. How will Naruto react to Sasuke'sabsence? And what will Sakura do, given the knowledge at her disposal? And what about Sasuke? With the knowledge of Iruka and Kakashi, his feelings for Naruto, and, most shockingly, the implication of Itachi in the murder of his parents, how will he hold up on his trip to Suna? All this and more in the next chapter of _For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him. _And, as always, remember to review!


	38. But the Fighter Still Remains

Okay, I want to start this chapter off with a disclaimer. Apparently my last chapter, and the events contained therein, had striking similarities to the story _Almost Sucks_ by Mashiro. I did not realize this at the time, but upon reading the story in question, I can certainly see the resemblance. As such, I would like to recognize Mashiro's great story as an unintentional influence, and offer my apologies for not noticing the similarity myself. What I have planned in the future is unlike Mashiro's, so expect for them to diverge from here on out.

Now that I got that out of the way, here's the next chapter! As usual, thank you for reading and reviewing. Now, on with the chapter!

* * *

38. But the Fighter Still Remains…

Naruto and Sasuke were riding on a tandem bicycle. That was enough to tell Naruto that he was dreaming, but he didn't particularly care. Sasuke was in front, and he was riding behind him, wrapping his arms around the teen's waist as they rode along. It was a bright, sunny day, and they were heading down a hill in the middle of the countryside, flowers in bloom along the path, with cute, Disney-esque birds fluttering around them. The wind blew through Naruto's hair as they sped along, and he hugged Sasuke tighter all the while, when suddenly they struck a rock. In an instant, they went tumbling over the handlebars, rolling down the hill until Naruto struck something hard.

That's when Naruto woke up. He was clutching his pillow to himself, lying on the floor with the sheets tangled around his naked body. The pillow was covered in his drool, but that wasn't what bothered Naruto as he sat up. No, the problem was that something was missing, something very important.

"Sasuke?" he asked, looking around in confusion. "Hmm… maybe he went to the bathroom?"

Standing up, Naruto headed over to his dresser, where he pulled out some clothes. Green shirt, blue shorts, and some red boxers. Good enough. Now that he was decent, he headed across the hall to the bathroom, where he could hear the shower running. He rapped on the door.

"Sasuke? You in there?"

"No! It's Kiba!"

"Kiba! Have you seen Sasuke anywhere?" the blond called back before pressing his ear up against the door.

"Can you give me five minutes to finish showering? Geez!" Kiba snapped before bursting into song. The mangled tune of 'I Will Survive' was enough to get Naruto to leave the Inuzuka alone.

Heading into the living room, Naruto scanned the area, hoping Sasuke had woken up early and decided to watch some television. Instead, he found only Akamaru, who came walking up to the blond with a whine.

"Now what's the matter with you, boy? Do you want breakfast?" Naruto asked, patting the puppy on the head. "Did that Kiba forget to fill your bowl?"

Shaking its head, Akamaru trotted over to the door, where he began to paw at the door. His whine grew louder.

"Oh, I see. You want to go for a walk, huh? Well, just let me put some shoes on and I'll be right there, okay?"

Barking in irritation, Akamaru shook its head again and darted past Naruto, disappearing down the hall. Watching the dog in bewilderment, the blond waited a moment until it reappeared, a piece of cloth clenched in its teeth. It dropped it on the floor and whined once more. Tentatively, Naruto bent down and retrieved the cloth, unfolding it in front of him. To his surprise, it was quite clearly a pair of underwear – Sasuke's boxerbriefs.

"Huh… well that's strange. I wonder if he decided to go commando today," Naruto said with a chuckle. "Well, thanks, Akamaru. I'll remember to give these to him when he comes back, all right?"

Suddenly, Akamaru nipped at Naruto's ankle, causing the blond to hop in shock. "Ow! What the hell was that for?" the blond asked, rubbing the bite-mark vigorously.

Again, Akamaru hurried to the door and began to bark, looking back and forth between the cloth and the door with a sense of urgency. Not quite following, Naruto did the same, studying the underwear in his hand and the door in an attempt to follow the puppy's logic. Finally, something clicked. "Wait… you mean Sasuke left?"

His eyes brightening with glee, Akamaru barked in confirmation.

"Hmm… that's strange. You'd think he would've told me if he was going to take off like that," Naruto said, placing a hand to his chin. "Well, I guess I'll just have to track him down, then."

Digging into his pocket, Naruto pulled forth a cell phone and dialed Sasuke's number. It instantly went to voicemail. Ending the call, Naruto pocketed the phone once more in frustration. "Figures… it would be too easy to just call the bastard."

After stepping into his shoes, Naruto swung open the door and gave Akamaru a final pat on the head. "Thanks for the help, Akamaru. I won't be gone long, all right?"

With an enthusiastic bark, Akamaru gave the blond his blessing and proceeded to chase after his tail. Chuckling, Naruto shut the door and started for the first place on his list: the Uchiha Mansion. If Sasuke was likely to be anywhere, it was his house.

Strolling down the street on that pleasant, Saturday morning, Naruto's heart was filled with confusion. Had he done something to upset Sasuke? Maybe he hadn't been ready for sex, and Naruto had pushed him into it somehow. It was stupid for him to have brought it up in the first place. Yes, he loved Sasuke and, yes, he was a horny teenager, but he should have had more reason than to pressure Sasuke into something like that. After all, sex was supposed to be about showing someone that you cared. It was personal, the most intimate sign of love. And if Sasuke wasn't ready for that, Naruto shouldn't have even considered it.

_But… he does love me, right? He'd never say it, but he does. So… sex shouldn't be that big of a deal. It's just what two people do when they love each other… I think…_

Of course, there was the other option, too: that Naruto had just been terrible. After all, he came early. As if that wasn't embarrassing enough, he'd made it perfectly clear that he had no idea what the hell he was doing. A gallon of lube and a full rainbow of condoms – he must've looked like such an idiot.

_Wait – what if I hurt him? Was I too rough? I thought I was doing a good job. I did everything the book said, after all. I took it slow, let him stretch out first…_

There were a lot of questions racing through Naruto's head, but one in particular kept popping back to the surface: did Sasuke even love him? Maybe this relationship was just one-sided. Maybe Sasuke never told Naruto that he loved him because he _didn't_ love him. But why would he act like it, then? Could it be that he was so lonely he would pretend to love someone, just so he could feel accepted?

Naruto shook his head.

_No. Sasuke's not that kind of person. He'd try to act strong and live without – he'd never fall for someone he didn't really care for out of a fear of dying alone. If anything, it would be the opposite. He'd _avoid_ loving someone so he wouldn't have to risk losing him…_

Naruto hoped beyond all hope that this was the case: that Sasuke was too afraid of losing someone he truly cared about to fully express his feelings. Maybe the sex was too much for him in that respect – too personal, too intimate. It made his fears seem so immediate that he had to get away.

The blond scratched his head. "Well, either that or he's just an ass. Both are pretty good explanations, I guess."

It was with that thought that Naruto stepped into Sasuke's neighborhood, which he found eerily silent. There were people walking around, going about their daily lives, but Naruto could tell there was something on their minds. It was almost as if no one wanted to be the one to vocalize what the rest were thinking – a taboo.

And, as Naruto hurried up the street, he soon discovered why. There, in front of the Uchiha Mansion, was a police barricade and a long line of 'caution' tape. A few squad cars were parked outside, and from the street Naruto could make out the shape of a few police officers inside, apparently doing a search of some kind.

Obviously, this all made Naruto freak out. Badly. He looked around in a panic to find a white-haired man sitting on the front porch, scribbling something in what appeared to be a notebook. As the blond darted over to the officer's side, the man clamped the notebook shut and tucked it into his back pocket.

"You! What the hell happened here?" Naruto asked curtly.

"It's a police investigation, kid," Jiraiya replied, ignoring the teen's disrespectful tone. "Are you looking for someone?"

"Yeah! Sasuke Uchiha – is he here?"

The man laughed loudly. "Don't I_ wish_! He showed up last night – maybe he had a premonition or something – but then he ran off once we told him what'd happened."

"And what _did_ happen, exactly?" the blond pressed urgently.

"What's it to you?"

"I'm his _boyfriend!_" Naruto snapped, having grown increasingly impatient with the officer's flippant personality.

Jiraiya smiled and rubbed his chin. "Huh… so _you're_ his boy toy, eh? Well, I guess you're bound to find out anyway. As I'm sure you know, Sasuke's parents were murdered six years ago. We've been researching the case these past few years, but for the most part we couldn't find a single lead. Not too long ago, though, we found a witness willing to testify about a meeting he overheard between the murderer and a co-conspirator. Their testimony was enough to get us a search warrant to the mansion here – we found all the evidence we needed to make an arrest."

"What do you mean?"

"It was Itachi – Sasuke's brother. He confessed to it right in his diary. He came willingly," Jiraiya concluded, shaking his head sadly. "A shame, really – that kid had so much potential. I'm telling you, that greed gets you every time."

Naruto ran a hand through his hair, trying to understand everything he'd been told. Sasuke's parents were murdered by Itachi, and Sasuke knew this now. Naruto wasn't sure how Sasuke would react to that news, but he did know how _he_ would feel if he found out, hypothetically, that Iruka had caused his parents' deaths: he'd freak the _hell out_.

There were so many emotions that Naruto could imagine speeding through Sasuke's mind, knowing what he now knew. Betrayal was the biggest one. Everything Sasuke had thought he knew about Itachi was apparently a lie. His big brother – the man who was supposed to comfort Sasuke and lead him through the ordeal of being an orphan – didn't actually care for him at all. There wasn't a single thing that could make you feel more isolated than to realize the person closest to you is not who he seemed.

But the big one, as far as Naruto could tell, would have to be guilt. After the initial shock wore off, it would have to cross the Uchiha's mind eventually. How could Sasuke not have noticed that his brother was a murderer? Why didn't he notice it before? Maybe then he could have prevented his parents' deaths. He'd still have a family. He wouldn't be in this mess.

And that was the thing that scared Naruto the most, as the gravity of the situation sank in: that Sasuke would blame himself for all of this. He didn't think Sasuke would take it to the extent that Gaara did – suicide wasn't really Sasuke's style – but he felt certain that Sasuke would internalize whatever torment he was experiencing. Just like how, after his parents died, Sasuke made it a point never to love anyone again, Naruto's gut told him that the Uchiha would try never to trust another human being, either, lest he get stabbed in the back.

_As if we didn't have enough problems with our relationship…_

"And you're saying you don't know where he went?" Naruto asked finally, his voice filled with concern.

"Like I said, I wish I did. We still have to ask him some questions down at the station, you know? But he's a slippery kid, I guess – he managed to elude three of my men who were chasing after him. Probably didn't hurt that they were the middle of a storm, but still, he must've been determined," Jiraiya said, taking the notebook out of his back pocket. "If you hear anything, be sure to call us, all right?"

"Sure. Thanks for the help," Naruto said before starting back down the street, his hands tucked into his pockets.

_Where could he have gone? What could he possibly have been thinking when he left here? Itachi killed his parents… would he have wanted something resembling a family? I mean, yeah, he felt betrayed, but it doesn't seem like he'd just reject all of his ties altogether. He probably wanted to feel like there was at least some stability in his life. Someone who never let him down before…_

There was only one solution. Pulling out his cell phone once more, Naruto dialed a number and waited. After five or six rings, it went to voicemail. Frowning, he dialed the number again. One ring. Two rings. Three rings…

"What is it?"

"Shikamaru! Have you seen Sasuke anywhere?" Naruto asked as he crossed the street. His breathing was gradually increasing with his growing panic.

"Sasuke? No. I haven't seen him since school yesterday," the Nara said with a groan. Naruto guessed he'd been sleeping – it was only noon, after all.

"Who is it, Shika?"

"It's Naruto – he's looking for Sasuke," Shikamaru said, his voice faint as he spoke away from the phone.

"Sasuke? Why? Is he missing or something?"

"I don't know – let me check," the lazy genius responded before his voice came in more clearly once again. "What's going on, Naruto?"

"Umm… well…"

_Crap… I didn't think this through. I don't want to worry him if he's with Temari. I mean, I can always tell him later, once I know what exactly's going on. I'd rather not tell him we were having sex, either…_

"It's just… he wasn't there this morning," Naruto finally confessed with a blush.

"Ah…" Shikamaru said, acknowledging instantly what had gone unsaid. "Doesn't sound like the Sasuke I know. Did he seem all right and everything? When you were together, that is?"

_Curse him… why does he have to know _everything_?_

"Well… I mean… I think so. He didn't say anything was wrong."

"Naruto, you may not know Sasuke as well as I do, but you _know_ that's not a good enough answer. Tell me – did anything seem off about him?" Shikamaru continued, growing less groggy and more serious.

"Hmm…" Naruto said, scratching his cheek as he walked past various shops and restaurants. "I guess he seemed a bit distracted when he came over. Like he had something on his mind. But after a few minutes he got over that."

"Anything else?"

The blond blushed deeper. "He was nervous, I suppose."

"Nervous?"

"It was… our first time. I would've been more concerned if he _wasn't_ nervous."

There was a pause, along with some murmurs on the other end. "That's a good point, but it doesn't really help us. If he was acting strangely before, then it's possible that nervousness wasn't just because of the sex."

_Just tell the whole world, why don't you?!_

"I'm sure that was at least part of it, but there might've been something else on his mind. You know Sasuke – he's never focused on one thing in his entire life. His brain is always working."

"So you're saying I was no good?" Naruto asked defensively.

Shikamaru sighed. "_No_. I'm just saying that, while he might've been nervous about the sex, he might've also been nervous about what the sex _meant_. Something more than performance anxiety, you know? Remember – love is one of the scariest things in the world to Sasuke. In away, the fact that he wasn't there this morning could mean that he really _does_ care about you, Naruto."

"You mean it?"

"I do – but there's only one way to find out for sure. If I had to guess, I'd say that Sasuke went over to Kakashi's place. I'll text you his address real quick. I know if I tell you over the phone you'll forget."

With that, Shikamaru hung up, cutting off Naruto's expletive-laden rant in defense of his intelligence. Moments later, his phone buzzed, with a single line – 6969 Icha Lane, Apt. 27. Naruto stopped and glanced up at the nearest street sign. To his surprise, he had been walking along Icha Lane throughout his conversation with Shikamaru.

_Ha! I must be psychic or_ _something_.

Hurrying down the road, Naruto soon arrived at 6969, where he discovered an apartment complex not unlike his own – just a bit classier. Due to the similar design, it did not take the blond long to reach apartment 27, where he proceeded to knock on the door. After a few anxious moments of waiting, the door swung open to reveal Kakashi, his mask on, clad in a cozy, green robe. Clearly, Naruto was not who he was expecting to see that morning.

"Naruto? How… how do you know where I live?" he asked, looking around outside to see if he was being pranked somehow.

"Shikamaru told me," Naruto replied hurriedly. "Tell me, have you seen Sasuke anywhere?"

Kakashi stamped his foot. "Damn… and I was hoping you'd know."

"Wait – you've been looking for him too?"

"Come inside – I'll explain everything," Kakashi said, stepping aside to let the blond in. As they walked over to the couch, he tried his best to be a good host. "Can I get you something to drink? I have… hmm… milk? Lemonade?"

"No, I'm fine," Naruto said, taking a seat on the red sofa. "So, what happened, exactly? Did he come by here, too?"

"Too? You mean he was somewhere else last night?" Kakashi asked, pouring himself a cup of coffee in the kitchen.

"Wait, you mean you don't know?"

"What don't I know?"

Naruto considered this for a moment before rising off the couch in a dramatic fashion. He hurried out the door, only to return seconds later with a newspaper, which he tossed into the teacher's lap. "Look at that – front page."

Sitting down on the couch, Kakashi unfolded the paper, spending only three seconds skimming the front page before seeing exactly what Naruto meant. "'Merchants of Death – Akatsuki Corporation CEOs Arrested for Murder.' So Jiraiya finally made his move, huh?"

"You knew about this?" Naruto asked indignantly.

"I'm friends with the officer in charge of the investigation. He told me that they were building a case against Itachi – they'd suspected him, but they could never prove it. I guess they finally found all the evidence they needed, though," Kakashi said, setting the paper to the side. It was then that the significance dawned on him. "Do you mean to tell me that Sasuke knows about this?"

"I talked to a police officer over at the Uchiha mansion – apparently he showed up last night and took off running once he learned what had happened. I was hoping he'd come over here," Naruto said, before making a quick scan of the apartment. "But I'm guessing that's not the case."

"He _was_ here last night, but it must've been before he learned about Itachi. He didn't say anything about it," Kakashi said, lifting his mask to take a sip of coffee. He sighed. "Then again, he didn't say much of anything."

"But… if he hadn't learned about Itachi yet, then what could he have been so upset about that he'd leave so suddenly?" Naruto asked, feeling certain he already knew the answer.

_So it _was_ me…_

"I… might know the answer to that," Kakashi replied cryptically, shooting a furtive glance down the hallway. It was there that he saw a familiar brunet stumbling out of his bedroom in his underwear. The teacher nearly choked on his coffee. "Excuse me for a moment."

Completely oblivious, Naruto mulled over what he knew in his head while Kakashi darted down the hall, preventing the hung-over Iruka from entering the living room and seeing his son. Though he could hear snippets of dialogue in the background, particularly Kakashi's harsh whispers, the blond barely acknowledged them. Instead, he tried to understand why Sasuke would leave his apartment in the first place.

It made sense that Sasuke would feel overwhelmed after learning about Itachi – anyone would. But in order for him to have known about that, he had to have left Naruto's apartment first. Though he tried to find some other explanation (maybe he got a phone call during the night? Maybe he had a premonition?), the truth seemed obvious – it was because of Naruto. Even if it was for a positive reason, like Sasuke was afraid of being too close to Naruto, the fact of the matter was that Sasuke had wanted to get away from the blond – to run away, to escape.

And that hurt.

_He doesn't want to be around me… I'm just a burden to him…_

Naruto only wished he could feel the same way. Even though Sasuke had ran away, even though he was trying to distance himself from the blond as much as possible, Naruto couldn't stop loving him. He was heartbroken, betrayed, and humiliated, but most of all he was worried sick. He was going to find Sasuke, and he was going to love him like never before.

"You're not making sense, Kakashi? Now get out of my way – I need to get some coffee for this headache…"

Naruto froze. He knew that voice.

"No! Just wait a second!"

Glancing over his shoulder, Naruto found, much to his surprise, a nearly-naked Iruka stepping into the living room, leaning against the wall for support. Following a few steps behind was Kakashi, whose face was evidently burning red beneath his mask. After a quick second of silence, Iruka's eyes met his sons, and they both yelped in surprise.

"Naruto?"

"Dad?"

"What are you doing here?" they asked in unison.

"Umm… well… you see… it was raining last night, so…" Iruka began, his faced flushed with awkward embarrassment. He scratched his head and looked to Kakashi for help. The silver-haired man simply shook his head, however, before explaining.

"We're dating."

"But… he's my… and you're Sasuke's…" Naruto blurted out, looking back and forth between the two men in mild horror.

Iruka ran a hand through his hair in irritation. "Look, I'm sorry if this is awkward for you, but I'm dating your teacher. We like each other, and we're happy. I meant to tell you, but we never really found a good time…"

"Iruka… there's something else going on here. Maybe we should all just sit down and have a talk, okay?" Kakashi said, placing a hand on his boyfriend's shoulder while giving Naruto a knowing look.

Naruto did not like that look one bit. He knew exactly what it meant – Kakashi knew about him and Sasuke (not that Naruto hadn't suspected that already), and he did not intend to keep that a secret any longer. For a moment, Naruto's head filled with panic – how would Iruka react? Would he hate him? Would he be ashamed? When he glanced into his dad's eyes, however, he knew better. Of course Iruka wouldn't hate him for being gay – especially since he was apparently gay himself. More importantly, though, he was Naruto's dad, and Naruto was his son. They were family. Nothing could change that.

"All right," the blond concluded with a nod.

Guiding Iruka by the hand, Kakashi walked over to the couch, taking a seat on the edge of the couch, while allowing his boyfriend to sit beside Naruto in the middle. Father and son eyed each other awkwardly for a moment before Iruka cleared his throat.

"So… what exactly is going on here?"

Taking a deep breath, Naruto stared up at his dad with a look of sincerity and said, "The truth is, Dad, I lied to you a few weeks ago about Sasuke. He's not just a friend – he's my boyfriend."

Iruka gazed at the blond in bewilderment. "Boyfriend? You mean… you're gay?"

"Bi, actually," Naruto responded, blushing sheepishly. "I… I would've told you earlier, but I wasn't sure how you'd respond. I was afraid, I guess."

"Afraid? Oh, Naruto," Iruka said, instantly pulling his son into an embrace. He rested his head against Naruto's while continuing consolingly. "You have no reason to be afraid of telling me something. You're my son – you can tell me anything. How many times have I told you that?"

"I know," the blond replied with soft smile. "It's not always so easy in practice, though. That's why you didn't tell me that you'd found someone, right?"

Chuckling, Iruka glanced up at Kakashi while keeping one arm wrapped around his teen. "I suppose you're right. We both needed to open up a bit, huh?"

_That wasn't so bad. He hasn't freaked out or anything. Why did I ever worry about this to begin with? It all seems so stupid now…_

Suddenly, Iruka seemed to be struck with realization. He turned back to Naruto, his eyes wide with horror. "Wait a second… that day when I met Sasuke. In your bed. Naked…"

Naruto cringed. Kakashi shook his head. Iruka fumed.

_I spoke too soon…_

"Umm… it's not what you're thinking…" Naruto said, backing away from his indignant dad.

"YOU WERE HAVING SEX?!"

"No! Not sex! We were just, umm," the blond began, trying to find a good euphemism for what he and Sasuke _had_ been doing, "'exploring.'"

"Just how long have the two of you been sexually active? What if he has a disease or something? Did you even think of that? Now you're going to have to get a blood test to see if you have AIDS or something…"

Iruka's rant was cut off abruptly by a hand planted firmly on his shoulder. Freezing mid-sentence, the brunet turned to find a stern Kakashi staring back at him. "Iruka – Sasuke's a good kid. You have no reason to worry. Besides, it's not like you've been particularly safe yourself."

"Yes, but… he shouldn't be… he's just…" Iruka stammered, color slowly rising in his cheeks before he finally crossed his arms with a 'hump.' "Fine. But still, I wish you'd at least talked with me about this beforehand. At least you haven't had sex, I suppose."

Naruto scratched his head. "Well, you see… the thing is… that's kinda why I'm looking for Sasuke. He ran off last night after we… you know… did it."

It was Kakashi's turn to be outraged. "You what?! Naruto, I'm sure Shikamaru talked to you about Sasuke's fear of personal connections – what could possibly make you think that sex would be a good idea when the two of you have only been together for a little over a month!"

"It was stupid, I know!" the blond said, biting his lip in frustration. "I thought he was ready… or, if he wasn't, he would just say so! I guess I was wrong, though…"

Sighing, Kakashi rested his face in his hands in thought. When he finally glanced back up, his anger had subsided to a sort of resignation. "It's okay – I can't really blame you for Sasuke's problems. This certainly complicates things, though. I was wondering why he showed up so late at night – now we know, at least."

"So, what are we going to do now?" Iruka chimed in, looking to his boyfriend expectantly. "We can't just wait for Sasuke to come back on his own, right?"

"You saw him, too?" Naruto asked in surprise.

"I vaguely remember him stopping by, yes. I was a little tipsy at the time, though."

"Tipsy? You were plastered, Iruka," Kakashi added with a laugh.

Shooting the man a glare, Iruka muttered, "Thank you for that, Kakashi. Anyway, from what I understand, Sasuke left last night and came by here, and now we don't know quite where he's gone. Am I right so far?"

"More or less," Naruto confirmed with a groan. "He also stopped by his house at some point, but he left after learning that his brother had killed his parents."

Before Iruka could express his astonishment, Kakashi shoved the newspaper into his face. A few seconds later, he nodded as the new information was processed. "I see… that's a lot for one kid to take in all at once, isn't it?"

"I think it would be a lot for anyone – I mean, he's already confused by his feelings towards Naruto. Then he finds out that I'm dating you, which probably didn't help matters. And then this thing with Itachi was just the icing on the cake," Kakashi concluded, placing a hand to his forehead in contemplation. "Maybe he went to Shikamaru's?"

"No – I called him just a few minutes ago. He hasn't seen him," Naruto replied wearily. "I was hoping you might have some idea where he'd go."

"Well, Kakashi? Any thoughts?" Iruka asked in support of his son.

Kakashi considered this for a moment. A long moment. There were many things to consider, after all – Sasuke's state of mind, his muddled emotions, his panic – which would all affect his actions. No matter what he focused on, whether the desire to distance himself from those he loved or the need to flee from that haunting memory of his parents' death, Kakashi could only reach one conclusion.

"Orochimaru," the man said solemnly before looking to Iruka and his son.

"Is that a city or something?" Iruka asked in befuddlement.

"Up until a month ago, he was one of the three people Sasuke trusted in the world, along with Shikamaru and myself. When he met Naruto, that all changed – and I think that's exactly what Sasuke would try to undo. He'd want to get away from his new friends and go back as far as possible – almost like pressing an emotional reset button. Of the three of us, Orochimaru's the one who's changed the least. Shikamaru has a girlfriend now and, as Sasuke discovered last night, I've met someone as well. Orochimaru's been living in a Neverland for the past ten years though – sitting in the park, playing with his band, perpetually unemployed. Sasuke would be drawn to that kind of stasis," Kakashi concluded, standing up with a sort of determination.

"Where are you going?" Naruto piped up as the teacher started down the hallway.

"I'm going to get dressed. Then, I'm going to go and find Sasuke. Iruka, you're free to go home – I don't want you to have to get dragged into this."

"But we don't even know where he _is_!" the blond protested as he leaped off the couch. "Are you really going to search all of Konoha for him? It'll take you days!"

Just as these words left Naruto's lips, his cell phone began to ring, filling the silence. For a moment, he considered ignoring it, but then he realized that it might be Sasuke calling to tell them all where he was. His hands shaking with anticipation, the blond pulled out his phone and flipped it open, saying, "Sasuke?! Where are you? Are you okay?"

"Naruto? It's me, Sakura."

Naruto's heart sank in disappointment. "Hi, Sakura… what is it?"

"Umm… I couldn't help but notice you're worried about Sasuke. I take it you haven't seen him since yesterday?" she asked, her voice wavering as she tried to keep a casual tone.

"No, I haven't – not that it's any of your business."

Sakura paused. "Look, I know I haven't been a great person these past few weeks, but I want to make it up to you. I… I know you'll do what's best for Sasuke, since… well… you love him, too."

Naruto's eyes narrowed. What was she talking about? "Okay…"

"Sasuke's going to Suna. He told me yesterday – I saw him just before he left. He said he was going to leave with a friend… that he needed to get away for a bit."

"Are you serious?" Naruto exclaimed, his heart racing with excitement. "Oh, Sakura! Thank you so much! I had no idea… this is just great! How can I ever repay you?"

"Just make him happy, Naruto."

With that, Sakura hung up, leaving Naruto with a dial tone. He stared at the phone for a moment before pocketing it once more and turning to Kakashi and Iruka. "That was Sakura – she knows where Sasuke is! Apparently he left with a friend to go to Suna."

"Orochimaru's band must have a gig out there – I think I saw a flyer saying something like that the other day," Kakashi added, with a thoughtful nod. "It's decided then – we're leaving for Suna. Are you coming too, Iruka?"

"I'm not just going to let you take my son away – of course I'm coming!" the brunet confirmed with a smirk.

"Great – go get dressed then. We leave in ten minutes," Kakashi concluded as the group dispersed, racing to prepare for the trip.

Of course, little did the trio know that Sasuke had never made it to Suna at all.

Dun-dun-_dunnn_. Oh dear - why didn't Sasuke make it to Suna? That's the million dollar question, of course. There are others, too - like, how is Naruto going to cope with the knowledge that Sasuke ran away from him? How will it impact their relationship? And what's going to happen now that the cat's out of the bag regarding Iruka and Kakashi? These are things to keep in mind until next time. In the meantime, remember to review, and thanks for reading!


	39. Stabbed by the Flash of a Neon Light

I'm going to apologize in advance for this chapter. I was going to make it longer with a few additional scenes after the end, but I decided those scenes would work better in the next chapter. My goal is to have the next chapter up sooner to make up for it. Anyway, thank you all again for reading and reviewing, and on with the chapter!

* * *

39. Stabbed by the Flash of a Neon Light

When Sasuke awoke, the van wasn't moving. He thought that they had arrived in Suna overnight, but glancing out the window, he realized this wasn't the case. Instead, they were parked outside a rest area in what appeared to be the _exact_ middle of nowhere. He looked around in momentary confusion before he felt his hair being ruffled.

"Good morning, sleepy-head. Pleasant dreams?"

Batting the hand away from his head, Sasuke glanced over his shoulder to find a smiling Orochimaru staring down at him. "Oh… morning, O."

"A little grouchy, aren't we? Then again, I guess I would be too if I spent the past eight hours sleeping in a van like this. You had your face pressed against the glass all night – it did _not_ look comfortable," O responded with a chuckle.

Sasuke rubbed his cheek. It did feel sore, but it paled in comparison to the sharp pain in his backside. Apparently Naruto really _was_ as big as he looked. "Where the hell are we, anyway? I thought we'd be in Suna by now."

"We would, but Kidomaru was too cheap to stop for gas, so we had to get out and push for a mile or so. They're inside eating breakfast now – did you want some?"

The Uchiha waved his hand. "No thanks. Not really hungry."

Taking a seat beside Sasuke, O sighed. "I thought you might say that – that's why I decided to wait here."

"I appreciate it, but there's no need. Go ahead and have your breakfast. I'll be fine on my own."

"Oh, Sasuke, Sasuke, Sasuke… I know you keep saying that to yourself, but I know as well as you do that it's not true," the snake-man said, shaking his head disapprovingly. "If it was, you wouldn't have come to us last night in the first place."

_He's got me there…_

"What do you want from me, then?"

"All I want is for you to tell me what's going on. As far as the others are concerned, you're only here to enjoy some indie music. I know better. What happened last night?" O pressed, staring at the Uchiha with an unusual degree of seriousness. "Did you and Naruto…?"

"Do it? Yes," Sasuke replied curtly, avoiding the man's gaze.

"And since you're here, I'm going to assume you weren't ready."

"Right."

"Then why did you do it?" O asked rhetorically.

"Because I'm an idiot, all right?" Sasuke exclaimed, throwing his hands up in frustration. He took a breath and composed himself rather quickly, turning his attention out the window once more. "I guess I wanted to make him happy."

"So what changed? If you ran away in the night, I hardly think you had his happiness in mind. Did you have a change of heart?"

"No… I was glad I did it at the time. I don't think I've ever been more in love with him than I was right then," Sasuke admitted with a warm smile. "But that's just it. I know that feeling. It's how I felt about my parents, and Itachi – both of them were taken away from me, though. And when you really care about someone like that, when you feel like your life is complete, like they were the missing pieces in the jigsaw puzzle of your soul, having that taken away from you is enough to crush even the strongest of spirits."

"Jigsaw puzzle of your soul… interesting. Well, tell me, Sasuke – does that mean you resent me?"

"Resent you?" Sasuke asked, tilting his head to the side quizzically.

"Right. I mean, you met me after your parents died. After Itachi became distant. Yet, here you are, confiding in me. Obviously I've become an important part of your life, too. Am I one of those jigsaw pieces, then? Was your soul really complete with what you had? Or did you just feel like it was?"

The raven-haired teen shook his head. "No, I don't resent you. But you can't replace what I had – it's like you're a piece from a different puzzle. It's like it's complete, but it doesn't match. It's not the same. Nothing can bring back what I've lost."

Orochimaru rubbed his chin as he considered the metaphor. "And what about Shikamaru and Kakashi? Are they different pieces as well?"

"Exactly. They fit into my life, but I can still feel that emptiness. And I know how vulnerable that puzzle is. All it takes is one blow to send the pieces flying into the air. The more pieces there are, the more vulnerable to puzzle becomes."

"And what about Naruto?"

"Him too."

O nodded before reaching over for his guitar on the adjoining seat. He plucked a string. "You know – I don't agree with your analogy at all, Sasuke. I think it's horribly flawed, and, really, it's beneath you. I know you're better than something as weak as that, even first thing in the morning."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow doubtfully. "Is that so? Like you could do any better."

"Well, let me give it a shot here. Have you ever played the game _Katamari Damacy?_"

"The game with the ball?"

"That's the one. See, imagine your soul is like a plain old katamari. There's nothing on it yet – it's just a ball. That's how you're born. If you try to do anything, though, your little katamari soul will attach itself to any relationship it can find. Your parents, for example. Your possessions. Your friends. Your pets. They're all little objects building up on your bare katamari."

"You're seriously making this argument?"

Orochimaru laughed. "Keep an open mind here. Now, of course, just because you have a relationship stuck to your katamari soul doesn't mean that it's going to stay there forever. As more aspects of the relationship pile atop one another, adding layer after layer to your katamari, it becomes stronger, but it can also become a hindrance. It's hard to move emotionally when your katamari can't roll forward because it's so lopsided. And then, when some terrible event comes and strikes your katamari soul, tearing that key relationship from you, it's truly crippling. You have nothing left to cling to – you have to start from scratch."

"So what are you suggesting?"

Plucking another string, Orochimaru continued. "I'm saying that the reason you were hurt so terribly before was because you didn't have many strong relationships in your life. It was just you and your family, and when that was taken away from you, it left you emotionally vulnerable. You had no one to trust except maybe Kakashi – he was a definite, albeit weak influence in your early life."

"But now I'm building up again. Rolling up more relationships in my 'katamari soul,' as you'd say," Sasuke said, with appropriate air quotes.

"Yes – over the years you've rebuilt, but it's been lopsided again. It's only been a few of us – me, Kakashi, Shikamaru. Now you've met Naruto, and you realize that your relationship with him in particular is the most powerful. You don't want that relationship to be destroyed, though, so you're trying to avoid it, to push it away."

Sasuke was silent.

"You admit it, then? You're just stalling, trying to ignore the facts."

"What do you want me to do? I… I can't live without him," the Uchiha said, his voice breaking as tears formed in his eyes.

"Then why are you trying to?" Orochimaru challenged, seizing the teen's shoulders. "That's what you're doing, you realize that, right? You're trying to live without Naruto voluntarily, so you won't be hurt by having him torn from your side."

"So what? It's like in your analogy – if I just keep the relationship at the base level, so it doesn't become lopsided, I won't have to run the risk of it crippling me."

"Ah – but you forget. Your relationship with Naruto is more rounded than it was with your parents. You've made friends with Kiba, Gaara, Lee, Choji – all these other relationships act as support for that key tie to Naruto. Even if he's taken from you, you'll at least have them to help you through your difficult times. They'll be the ones to cherish his memory as well, so he can live on forever."

Sasuke shifted uncomfortably. "You make it sound like an inevitability."

"Only because you're acting like it is. Remember, I was the one who believed Naruto's promise he made a few weeks ago – that he'd never leave you alone again as long as you live," Orochimaru countered as he strummed on the guitar. "I think you need to take a close look at your feelings, Sasuke. Think about how much Naruto really means to you. Are the good times you hope to spend with him really worth giving up just so you can avoid the possible misery of his loss?"

"I don't even know what to think anymore," Sasuke concluded with a depressed sigh. "Did you know Kakashi was dating Naruto's dad?"

"Does it really matter? It's not like any of you are actually family."

"But… it's weird! If they got together, it'd be like Naruto was my brother!"

O gave the teen a stern look. "It sounds to me like you're just looking for excuses now. There's no reason why Kakashi's love life should influence yours. You know how you feel about Naruto – stop trying to avoid it and face it head on!"

Sasuke knew O was right: he _was_ running. Knowing that was not enough for the Uchiha to stop, though. Even if he could deal with the emotional problems surrounding Naruto and Kakashi, there was still one key issue that was haunting him, one that he could not bear to tackle just yet: Itachi.

_He… he _killed_ them – in cold blood! Why? Why didn't he kill me, too? Was he going to? Was that his plan the whole time – just lying in wait for the perfect opportunity to strike? How many times did he watch me in my sleep, fantasizing about slitting my throat…?_

The teen shuddered. "I can't."

Orochimaru nodded as he set down the guitar. "I saw the papers this morning – about Itachi, that is. That's fucked up, if you ask me."

"You knew?"

"I didn't until an hour ago. I figured that had something to do with why you came to us, but I wanted to hear your reasoning before I jumped to any conclusions. Something tells me you were already looking to run away, but that… that was just the icing on the cake."

Sasuke sighed, his breath fogging up the window. "You could say that. I only wanted some time so I could think over what had happened with Naruto. I wasn't planning on running away. But with everything else… I was just overwhelmed."

"I understand – I just wanted to make you realize that at least one of your problems was being blown out of proportion. Everything that's happened with Naruto has been good for you. I've never seen you so happy. Even if it's tough, thinking about what might happen, you can't deny the joys you've found with him," the snake-man said, placing a hand on the teen's shoulder. "Now, as for Itachi, you know you can't run from him, either."

"I… I can't do it. I can't even think of him without feeling sick."

"No one ever said you'd have to go right this minute. You're free to stay here until you're ready, but we're not going to let you hide from reality. After all, you're the head of the Uchiha branch of Akatsuki now. That's a huge responsibility."

Sasuke's eyes widened – he hadn't considered that. What if they lost everything? The mansion? Their fortune? His breathing quickened. "Why? Why is this all happening to me? WHY?"

"Calm down, Sasuke – remember: you have friends, like me and Kakashi and Naruto. We'll help you through this."

Glancing up into O's smiling face, the Uchiha felt mildly better. Yes, he was still queasy, but at least he felt like there was still hope. He could make it through this, somehow.

"Maybe I should give Naruto a call… tell him I'm okay," Sasuke said, digging around in his pocket for his phone.

"You'd better wait until we get into town. There's no reception out here to speak of," Orochimaru responded as he peered out the window. "Shouldn't be too much longer – it looks like Kabuto and the others are done. Better buckle up."

Following the older man's advice, Sasuke sat up in his seat while Kabuto, Kidomaru, and Tayuya climbed aboard the van. None of them said a word to Sasuke about Itachi, or even asked why he had joined them. There was an unspoken understanding that Sasuke would open up when he felt ready. Sasuke was glad for that – although he trusted O enough to tell him about his troubles, he had never felt such a connection with the rest of Sound Village.

Though the engine struggled to get started, after a few tries at the ignition Kidomaru managed to get it going, and soon they were all on their way. Sasuke gazed lazily out the window as they drove along, watching as they drove over miles upon miles of forest, with a thin stream running through the middle. Soon, things became rocky as they neared the mountains separating Konoha from Suna – it would only be an hour or so until they reached the other side. All Sasuke had to do was lay back and rest his eyes, and soon they'd arrive at the desert city.

At least, that's what Sasuke thought. Nearing the mountains, the travelers found themselves underneath a dark storm cloud, which immediately poured down upon the road.

"Damn rain… couldn't make this easy for us, could it?" Kidomaru cursed as he turned the windshield wipers on full blast. "I can barely even see in this shit…"

"Quit complaining, you fuckin' pussy," Tayuya snapped before returning to tuning her flute. "I offered to drive, but apparently your pride wouldn't allow it."

"No, I said I'd rather survive this trip, thank you very much. Everyone knows women can't drive."

"You want to repeat that, asshole?"

"I said women can't drive. They're too easily distracted by the good-looking guys like myself."

"Oh, please – this is coming from the guy who was hitting on a fuckin' transvestite all night at that club. Remember that, Kidomaru? Or were you too shit-faced?"

"Tayuya, would you shut the hell up?" Kidomaru snapped, glaring over his shoulder at the redhead.

"Kido – watch the road!" Kabuto exclaimed.

All Sasuke could see was the bright flash of headlights before everything went dark, his ears deafened by bursting glass and crunching metal.

Yes, I'm a cruel author. I'm a fan of cliffhangers, what can I say? So... that little journey to Suna was cut short rather abruptly. What will happen now? I don't even dare to say anything more, lest I give it away. I'll leave it up to you to guess. Anyway, thank you for reading, and remember - review!


	40. Sail on, Silverboy

As I promised, I got this chapter up as soon as possible. Hopefully the wait wasn't too painful! As usual, I want to thank all of you for reading and for reviewing. Now, without further ado, on with the chapter!

(PS - it appears that just about every scene change I've written has been altered by so that it is not marked by three asterisks, as I originally intended. Sorry for any confusion with abrupt changes as a result. I've gone through and marked every scene change with "xxxxx," so that should clarify things. Sorry again.)

* * *

40. Sail on, Silverboy

It took Orochimaru some time to process what had happened. At some point during his argument with Tayuya, Kidomaru had drifted into the wrong lane. When he finally set his eyes back on the road, he found them hurtling headlong into a semi truck. That much O knew for a fact. When Kidomaru turned to the left in a panic, however, the rest became a blur. There were sparks. There was flying glass. There was the blare of a horn and the cries of skidding tires. There were chunks of ravaged metal and splattered blood.

And there was pain.

That was all O could think of as he tried to move. He wasn't sure where the van was – all he knew was that he had to escape. Even in his daze, he could smell the noxious fumes leaking into the van. Fire seemed imminent.

_The seatbelt. First the seatbelt…_

Orochimaru had to consciously order his body to move, almost as if he were teaching it how to function all over again. Slowly, he reached his hand down to the buckle and pressed the button. He then awkwardly forced it from his shoulder with one arm, the other laying uselessly at his side.

_Damn… did I break it in the fall?_

It was only then that it struck the snake-man – what about the others? Were they okay? A quick glance ahead told him that this was not the case. Kidomaru lay limp against the deployed airbag, while Tayuya was sticking halfway through the windshield, never being a fan of seatbelts herself. Only Kabuto seemed to have gotten out of the ordeal in one piece. Though he looked as if he had hit his head, judging from his cracked glasses, Kabuto was at least conscious. Bloody, battered, and bruised, but conscious.

That only left Sasuke. Turning to his left, O was at once relieved and panicked. Sasuke was there – that was a plus. Somewhere in the crash, however, his head had bashed against the now-shattered window. He was breathing, albeit slowly, but he had a significant amount of blood running down the side of his head. It did not take a doctor to tell he was unconscious, and in a perilous condition.

"Kabuto… can you stand?" O asked, turning his attention back to his right-hand man.

The silver-haired man nodded as he adjusted his damaged lenses. "I think so. You?"

"I'll be fine, but I can't move my right arm. Can you help me with Sasuke? We have to get him out of here."

"What about Kidomaru and Tayuya," Kabuto asked, indicating the duo in the front seats.

"Kabuto… it's too late for them…"

The truth hurt. Kabuto bit his lip, but rose from his seat regardless. It was only as he watched his friend rise that Orochimaru realized that the van had landed on its side – he was lying against Sasuke, and Kabuto was standing on the side of the van. Orochimaru gagged – his head was still spinning, and the disorientation was nauseating. He was just glad he hadn't eaten breakfast.

"Here, O. You need to stand – I'll help you out through the back." Kabuto said, indicating the rear door.

Orochimaru shook his head. "No – we have to help Sasuke first. He's unconscious. I can at least move on my own."

"At least let me help you to your feet, then. We can carry Sasuke out together," Kabuto insisted, extending his hand to the snake-man.

"Fine," O concluded, grasping his bandmate's hand.

With a grunt, Kabuto pulled O upright, so that they were both standing beside Sasuke's head. Nodding at each other, they bent down and scooped Sasuke up, each supporting a side of the teen over their shoulders. Slowly and steadily, they made their way around the back seat and pushed open the rear hatch. Carefully they stepped out of the vehicle and walked a short distance away through the muddy grass, where they set the teen down under a tree, out of the rain.

"I'm going back for Tayuya and Kidomaru," Kabuto said as he stumbled back towards the van. "Check Sasuke for any wounds. We need to treat him as best as we can."

Orochimaru murmured his agreement before crouching down to the Uchiha's side. A quick search told him that Sasuke had gotten off easy. Aside from the gash running a bit above his left ear, the teen seemed to be in good shape. A few bruises, a few other cuts, but nothing particularly serious. That gash was a cause for concern, however, and O knew it.

_Maybe we can get help…_

Shielding his eyes from the rain, O scanned the area in an attempt to pinpoint their location. Up above he could see the highway, along with the enormous chunks of dirt the van had churned up as it tumbled along the steep hill. The semi truck they'd hit was nowhere to be found.

_Fucking cowards… leaving the scene of an accident like that. Bastard…_

O sighed – there was no way he and Sasuke could get up that hill, either. All those tax dollars, and they couldn't even bother to put a guardrail on along a road this dangerous. It was enough to make him sick.

"Success!" Kabuto called out weakly as he reemerged from the van, carrying Tayuya and Kidomaru's limp bodies on his arms. After limping forward, he set them down beside Sasuke and sighed.

"What do we do now?" O asked, staring up at the road in despair. There's no way we can get up that."

"There's bound to be a way up a little bit down the road. I'll head down that way and find help while you stay here with Sasuke."

"Right," Orochimaru said with a bob of his head. He glanced down at his former bandmates mournfully. "You went to med school for a few years, right? Can you tell… if there's a chance left for them, that is?"

Kabuto shook his head. "I checked their pulses in the car. It looked like they died instantly. Even though we managed to avoid a head-on collision with that semi, we probably bounced five or six times on the way down before being stopped by that tree there. We're lucky any of us are still alive, to be honest."

O cursed under his breath. "I see. I'll stay here with Sasuke, then. That rest stop wasn't too far back – hopefully you can find some help there."

Giving the snake-man a final nod, Kabuto started off into the woods, leaving Orochimaru alone with the unconscious teen and his deceased bandmates. It was only after examining Sasuke's gash once more that a thought occurred to O – he didn't know the first thing about treating wounds like these. He had to try to stop the bleeding, that much he knew, but without any bandages he was practically useless.

_Well, first things first – I have to get him out of this storm. The cold can't be doing him any good._

Orochimaru surveyed the area carefully. He didn't want to wander too far from the van, in case Kabuto came back with help. He wanted to stay near Kidomaru and Tayuya as well – it wouldn't be right to just abandon them so easily. Fortunately, O spied a cave not too far away, near a taller cliff in the foothills.

"Sorry, Sasuke – looks like I'm going to have to drag you a bit further," Orochimaru said with a weak chuckle as he struggled to lift Sasuke off the ground. "If only my other arm was working…"

The pain was almost intolerable as O essentially pulled the teen onto his back. He began to realize that perhaps he was not in as good a condition as he'd initially thought. With every step, Orochimaru felt a wave of agony ripple through his body. Either he had seriously bruised his calf, or he'd somehow broken his leg in the fall. Then there was his side, which had felt numb at first, but was now stinging with increasing intensity.

_Just a little bit further… then I can focus on treating our wounds…_

By the time O arrived at the cave, which had only been thirty or forty yards away, he was practically blinded by the pain. His breath came in short, sharp gasps, and he was beginning to shiver – possibly from the cold and damp, but he feared it might be for some other reason. He was growing dizzy. It became such a problem that, once inside the cave, Orochimaru nearly dropped Sasuke as he collapsed onto his knees, before finally setting the teen down.

"Okay, Sasuke… let's see what we have here…" Orochimaru said, lifting Sasuke's shirt up over his head. "Sorry about this, but I need to be sure you're safe everywhere else."

The wet shirt didn't come easily, but eventually O managed to peel it off and lay it on a nearby rock. A cursory glance told the man that Sasuke at least didn't have any deep wounds. There were some cuts that were bleeding slightly, but nothing serious. Some bruises could be seen, too – with one nasty one by a rib – but, again, it didn't appear to be life threatening. At the very worst it was a fracture. O sighed in relief.

"Well, you check out on the upper half. Now…" O continued, reaching down to undo Sasuke's pants. "Again, it's for your own good."

After fumbling briefly, O managed to slip off Sasuke's pants one leg at a time and add them to the rock. Starting down at the legs, the snake-man continued his search upward, checking for any other cuts, bruises, or possible breaks. Fortunately, there was only one thing that seemed out of place, and it wasn't a wound. It was the bright orange boxerbriefs.

O chuckled. "So… a little souvenir of Naruto, eh? You probably didn't even mean to grab these. Not consciously, at least. I think you knew what you were doing, though – it hurt to distance yourself from him, so you brought along something to remind you of him. Something intimate."

Sasuke had a bit of wet hair stuck to his face. Orochimaru flicked it away with a smile. "That's love, Sasuke."

After brushing Sasuke's hair aside, O examined his hand to find it had been stained with blood. He was seized with momentary panic. "That's right – your head!"

Glancing over at Sasuke's shirt, O snatched it up and proceeded to tear a strip from the hem of the clothing. Once he was satisfied with the length, he crawled over to Sasuke's side and cradled the teen's head in his lap. There, he proceeded to tie the strip of cloth around the Uchiha's head like a makeshift bandage.

"Sorry to ruin your shirt. You'll thank me later."

Setting Sasuke back down on the ground, Orochimaru felt the sharp pain in his side again. This time he actually cried out briefly before biting his lip. "What the hell is that, anyway?"

Lifting his own shirt, O stared down at his front in bewilderment. The source of his pain became immediately apparent. There, just to the side of his belly button, was a shard of glass imbedded in his gut. It was bleeding profusely.

"Now… how did that get there?" O asked, his face growing even paler than usual. "Must've landed on it sometime during the crash… eh, Sasuke?"

Tentatively, Orochimaru reached for the bit of glass and attempted to yank it out. Though the pain was excruciating, O managed to pull it forth, though not before drawing blood from his lip. Once the glass was out, Orochimaru breathed heavily in satisfaction, staring at the chunk in a mix of horror and relief.

It was a long piece. It didn't take a doctor to see that wasn't good. Before he could think negatively, though, O shook his head.

_No! I have to think about Sasuke. He's my responsibility – focus on him right now._

Glancing at the Uchiha, O finally realized that something else was wrong with the teen. His skin was particularly pale and, more tellingly, he was shivering. O shivered as well. "I'll tell you what, Sasuke – let's huddle together for warmth. It's the only way, I think…"

With that, O lay down beside Sasuke, wrapping his good arm around the teen. He pulled him close, taking deep breaths as he tried to conserve what little heat was left. Outside the cave, the storm raged on.

xxxxxxx

Kakashi had been having a hell of a morning. It started off great, with him and Iruka sharing an intimate moment back at his apartment. Then Sasuke had arrived, which had only made him worry. Now, after having learned from Naruto all about sex and Itachi, his worry had been upgraded to full-fledged anxiety. And to top it all off, now Kakashi knew where the Uchiha actually was – well, at least who he was with.

_Why the hell would he run off with Orochimaru like that? I've warned him before that the guy isn't trustworthy. Orochimaru's probably planning to get him drunk and then…_

Kakashi shook his head. There was no way he was going to let that happen. He didn't say a word as he drove along in his little red car, with Iruka riding shotgun, and Naruto sitting quietly in the back. They all understood the seriousness of the situation. Even though neither Naruto nor Iruka had ever met Orochimaru, they could sense Kakashi's unease.

_I just don't understand what he sees in that man. The guy's a loser – he dropped out of high school to start his band, and they haven't had a gig in years. He's a bum! Yet, here he is running off with the guy…_

Kakashi gripped the steering wheel tightly, turning his knuckles white.

_And as if that weren't enough, Orochimaru's easily the creepiest man I've ever met. Sitting down in the park day after day, preying on confused teens like Sasuke…_

Of course, Kakashi had never _seen_ Orochimaru talk to any teens besides Sasuke. He'd heard the rumors, though. He'd heard of former members of Sound Village – young ones around Sasuke's age – who suddenly abandoned the band without a word. It was common knowledge that they'd left to get away from the predatory bandleader. Either that, or they were tired of not having any gigs.

They had left the apartment immediately after Sakura's phone call. Suna was only a few hours away – they could be there by the evening if they hurried. Thus, around one o'clock they started down the road, and soon they were cruising down the expressway. By three o'clock they passed a rest stop, where they spotted a semi truck whose front was slightly crushed.

"I feel bad for whoever was on the receiving end of that," Iruka commented in an attempt to break the extended silence.

"Chances aren't too good if you hit one of those head on, that's for sure," Kakashi replied half-heartedly.

A few minutes after passing the rest stop, it began to rain. As much as he hated to do so, Kakashi decided to slow down. It was better for them to get to actually get to Suna alive than to drive too quickly, after all. Only a few minutes later, his windshield wipers flying in an attempt to keep up with the deluge, Kakashi could just make out a form walking towards him in the rain. He was suddenly glad that he'd eased up on the gas, for he could just identify the man even in the storm.

"Kabuto," he muttered, his eyes narrowing.

"Who?" Naruto asked, poking his head between the front seats. "Someone you know?"

"He's one of Orochimaru's bandmates," Kakashi explained as he stepped on the brakes. "And it looks like he's hurt."

_Please be okay, please be okay, please be okay…_

Pulling over to the side of the road, Kakashi honked the horn. In the rearview mirror, he could just see Kabuto turning towards the car in surprise. Within a short period of time, Kabuto had limped up to the side of the car, where Kakashi rolled down the window, eyeing the spectacled man with contempt.

"Where is he?"

Kabuto was taken aback. "Who?"

"Don't play dumb with me! Sasuke! Where the hell's Sasuke?" Kakashi snapped, a clap of thunder accentuating his demand.

Kabuto looked as if he was about to cry. "A few miles down the road – maybe five or ten, I'm not sure – we had an accident. Semi truck came out of nowhere."

"Is he okay? Why isn't he with you?"

"Kakashi, just let the man speak. He's clearly shaken," Iruka said in a futile attempt to calm his boyfriend.

"Would you be calm if it was Naruto missing?" Kakashi asked before turning his attention back to Kabuto. "So help me, if you did something to him, I'll make you wish that semi had killed you."

"He's alive," Kabuto said weakly, "but he's unconscious. I left him with O back at the crash site while I came to look for help."

"What about your other bandmates? Where are they?"

"Dead."

Kakashi's heart was pounding. Sasuke was unconscious – that was all he knew. If he was unconscious, that probably meant he hit his head at some point during the crash. Did he have a concussion? Or worse? What if he'd fractured his skull? He could be dying – there was no time to stand around threatening Kabuto.

"Get in the car," Kakashi ordered, unlocking the back door.

"Thank you, Kakashi…"

"Don't thank me – I'm not through with you yet. I just need you if I want to see Sasuke alive again."

With a gulp, Kabuto climbed into the back seat beside Naruto, his rain-soaked clothes dripping onto the interior. He buckled up and pointed forward. "Just follow this road for ten minutes or so – you'll know when we get there."

Nodding, Kakashi stepped on the gas and continued down the expressway, throwing caution to the wind. He didn't have the luxury to play things safe now – not when Sasuke's life was on the line.

_If anything happens to him… _anything_… I'll kill that Orochimaru. I don't care what his excuse. I'll hill him with my bare hands._

It was only five minutes, in the end, before Kakashi arrived at the crash site. Kabuto had been right – he knew it was the place immediately upon seeing it. Glass, rubber, metal, and dirt were strewn across the highway, like an orgy of carnage. Again, he slammed on the brakes and pulled over to the side, unbuckling as they came to a halt.

"Iruka – drive into town and call for help. I doubt there's any reception out here, otherwise Kabuto would've tried calling first," Kakashi ordered as he stepped out of the car.

"Right. It's a deadzone," Kabuto confirmed from the back seat.

_Deadzone… please don't let that be true…_

"Okay. Should I bring Naruto with me?" Iruka asked as climbed out of his seat.

"I'm going with him," Naruto insisted, having already exited the vehicle. "He's my boyfriend."

For a moment, Iruka looked as if he was going to protest this decision, but finally relented with a smile. "Okay – just be careful."

"Thanks, Iruka," Kakashi said with a grateful nod as Kabuto joined him and Naruto outside the car. "Let's go, you two."

With that, Kakashi, Kabuto, and Naruto started across the street as Iruka took off in the car. Pausing at the top of the steep hill, Kabuto gazed down at the wreckage of the van and pointed. "Well, there it is. We'll have to go around to get down there, though."

"To hell with that!" Naruto exclaimed, charging past Kabuto with reckless abandon.

Kakashi watched with a bit of awe as the blond descended the steep hill, sliding down through the mud while avoiding rocks and trees, before finally rolling to a halt at the bottom. Finally, he shrugged and followed suit, albeit more slowly, keeping low so he wouldn't topple over. Kabuto, in his injured state, took even longer to descend, and Kakashi and Naruto were in no mood to wait up for him. While the spectacled man was only halfway down the hill, they proceeded to examine the scene, searching for their beloved Uchiha.

The scene was worse than Kakashi had imagined. Apparently the gas tank in the van had caught fire, as the bright Volkswagen had been charred black, with much of the surrounding brush likewise singed or burned. Not far away were the bodies of Kidomaru and Tayuya, their skin having taken on a bluish tint from exposure to the cold. More importantly, Sasuke and Orochimaru were nowhere to be seen.

"Where did they go?" the silver-haired man asked, his eyes darting around the area fretfully.

"O probably took Sasuke to find shelter," Kabuto explained as he stumbled down the rest of the hill. "It looked like there was a cave a short distance away. I'd check there."

Not needing to be told twice, Kakashi and Naruto took off, leaving a frustrated Kabuto in their wake. It took them only a minute or so to find the cave, which they entered at full speed. A short distance inside, however, they skidded to a halt.

There, lying in the back of the cave, were Orochimaru and Sasuke. Both were bloody, bruised, and sickly – but one thing stood out to Kakashi: Sasuke had been stripped to his underwear. And O was spooning with him. He clenched his fist.

"You bastard! Get your hands off him!"

Groaning, Orochimaru turned his head slightly and cracked an eye open. He made what appeared to be a combination of a cough and a chuckle. "Ah… Kakashi… what brings you here?"

"We're here to bring back Sasuke!" Naruto exclaimed, making a move forward. He was quickly stopped by Kakashi's firm hand, however, causing him to glance up at his teacher in confusion.

"You stay out of this. It's between me and O," Kakashi ordered, his eyes fixed on the snake-man.

"What? But he's my…"

"I know, but he's my son."

It felt weird, hearing those words. Clearly, Naruto found it odd himself, but he didn't argue. Approaching Orochimaru with increasing malice, Kakashi chanced a look at Sasuke. Kabuto had been right – he was clearly unconscious. At least, he prayed it was only that.

"What did you do to him?" Kakashi asked, closing his eyes in an attempt to contain his rage. His fist trembled.

O could only smile at Kakashi, his arm remaining fixed around the teen's shoulder. It was enough to push the teacher over the edge. With an almost primal roar, Kakashi seized Orochimaru's shirt and lifted him from the ground, pinning the serpentine man against the wall.

"Do play dumb with me! What the hell did you do to my son, dammit?"

O's smile only grew wider. "Nothing."

Kakashi cocked his fist. "Don't give me that bullshit!"

"Wait! Kakashi, don't hurt him!"

Glancing over his shoulder, Kakashi found Naruto bent over Sasuke, examining the raven-haired teen's wounds carefully. "What do you mean? You saw what he was doing to Sasuke…"

"No, really – look, Sasuke has a big gash on his head. Someone patched it up," Naruto said, indicating the bloody cloth wrapped around Sasuke's forehead. "There's no way Sasuke could've done that himself."

"Then why did they strip him? He clearly just wanted to use this opportunity to have his way with Sasuke… it's been his goal all along. Hasn't it?" Kakashi spat at the still smiling O.

"Nope."

"Kakashi… Sasuke's clothes are soaked. Maybe he was just trying to keep Sasuke warm," Naruto offered as Kakashi looked back and forth between him and Orochimaru.

"And that little embrace we walked in on? Are you trying to tell me there's some innocent explanation for that, too?"

"Body heat?" the blond suggested.

"Kakashi… what's more important? Beating me to a pulp… or saving your son's life?" O asked, still with his enigmatic smile.

"Wipe that damn smirk off your face!" Kakashi finally snapped, swinging his fist around in a mighty punch. To Naruto and O's surprise, however, it met only the wall of the cave just beside the snake-man's face. Kakashi released the man's shirt, causing him to collapse in a heap on the ground. "Now get out of here."

"I can't," O stated simply, leaning against the wall.

"And why the hell not? You're not through tormenting me yet?" Kakashi shouted, removing his bloody knuckles from the rock.

Struggling to find the strength, O managed to lift his shirt, revealing the deep hole in his side. "I'm dying, Kakashi."

Suddenly, everything sank in. It hit Kakashi like a slap in the face, knowing he had been threatening to kill the man who had saved his son's life. He now understood that smile – it was the peaceful smile of someone at death's door. The satisfied smile of one who knew he was about to pass from this world. Most importantly, it was the smile of someone who knew his last moments hadn't been in vain. He'd kept Sasuke alive – that was enough.

Kakashi didn't say a word, but only knelt down beside O and helped support the man's increasingly limp body. Naruto remained with Sasuke, though he couldn't help but stare at Orochimaru as well.

"So… you're Naruto?" O asked with a cough.

The blond appeared startled by the man's sudden question. "Oh, umm… yes, yes I am."

"I knew it… he's told me so much about you. I feel like I've known you for some time," O said, gazing over at Sasuke. "I'm just glad I got to meet you… just once…"

"Don't talk. Save your strength," Kakashi ordered as he held the weakening man. "You're going to be fine. Iruka's calling an ambulance as we speak."

"No… it's too late for me. I know that now," O continued before hacking into his hand, his entire body convulsing with every cough. "Thank you, Kakashi. Just promise… you'll take care of him."

Kakashi nodded. "I will."

"Goodbye… Sasuke…"

With that, O closed his eyes and breathed his last breath, the mysterious smile glued to his face. Outside, the heavens wept.

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That was hard for me. O was one of those characters that really grew on me. He went from being a creepy guy in the park to being a creepy, but oddly wise and kind soul. I felt bad about letting him go like this... but it had to be.

So, questions - what about Sasuke? Now that he's been found, will he survive? Or will O's sacrifice be in vain? And what about Naruto? We haven't had his thoughts on the matter for some time - how is he reacting to this whole situation? And what about Kakashi? Now that he's mentally accepted Sasuke as his son, how will his life change? There's so many questions, and so little time to answer them all! Find out the answers to some of these questions next time, and until then, remember - review!


	41. Smiling Faces Try to Understand

I'm so sorry, you guys. This chapter was really difficult for me, for some reason. It felt like every time I sat down to write, all I could come up with was garbage. To make a long story short, I wrote and rewrote parts of this several times (and I'm still not 100% satisfied with the first half), but I think it ended on a strong note. Anywho, sorry for the delaym and, as usual, thank you for reading and reviewing. Now, on with the chapter!

* * *

41. Smiling Faces Try to Understand

Naruto sat in Konoha Hospital outside Sasuke's room, staring at his hands in silence. It was late Sunday night, and he was exhausted. When Iruka had arrived at the crash site along with ambulances and police officers, Naruto, Kakashi, and Kabuto had already moved Sasuke and Orochimaru out of the cave. As hard as it had been to see Sasuke in his injured state, and as painful as it had been to watch O fade away, the hardest part of the day had been letting go of his boyfriend. He wanted to stay with Sasuke, to hold his hand, even if he couldn't feel it, but the paramedics wouldn't have it. Thus, with the knowledge that he might never see the Uchiha alive again, Naruto had relinquished his hold on Sasuke and watched as they wheeled him into the ambulance.

And now, there he was, waiting for some sort of news. Good news. Bad news. _Any_ news. He just wanted to be done with the uncertainty.

It wasn't just hard on Naruto, either. Iruka was sitting beside him, bleary-eyed and determined to stick it out, both for his son and for his boyfriend. Speaking of which, Kakashi was probably in the worst condition of them all. Somehow, after O died, the fire inside Kakashi had died with him. Was it because the fear of what might happen to Sasuke was that much closer to being a reality? Was it because Kakashi knew how devastated Sasuke would be when he found out what had happened to O? Or was it because he had been wrong about O all along – that the man that he had suspected of being nothing more than a pedophile ultimately gave his own life to protect Sasuke?

Naruto suspected it was a combination of the three, and the result was emotionally draining. Though Kakashi managed to keep his head up and his eyes open, the glimmer in them had faded. He looked an awful lot like he had that day he walked in soaking wet – when Sasuke had talked to him about Obito.

_I can only imagine what I look like… probably not much better…_

As if in response to the blond's thoughts, a familiar voice pierced the silence, saying, "You look like hell."

Glancing up, Naruto found Shikamaru watching him from across the hall with a weak smile. Though Kakashi had contacted the Nara immediately after getting into town, Naruto hardly expected him to show up so soon. He felt his spirits lift, albeit slightly. "Shikamaru! You came!"

"What's that supposed to mean? My best friend's in the hospital – of course I'm going to come," Shikamaru responded, taking a seat beside the blond. "So, tell me… any word on his condition?"

"No… all I know is that he's lost a lot of blood. They finished working on him an hour ago – on his wound, I mean – but he's still unconscious. They're afraid that, with the cold and everything, his system is struggling to bounce back," Naruto began, taking deep breaths between each statement in an attempt to calm himself.

It didn't work. After only a few seconds, he burst into tears, at which point Shikamaru patted the blond on the back consolingly. "It's okay, Naruto… it's okay. I've known Sasuke for years – he wouldn't let something like this take him down. He's too stubborn for that. Trust me, he won't die unless he can make a spectacle of himself in the process. He's kind of an ass like that."

Naruto made what sounded like a chuckle mixed with a sob. "You can say that again. Running off on us like that…"

"About that," Shikamaru said, scratching the back of his head awkwardly. "I want you to know that, no matter what happens, this isn't your fault."

"What do you mean…?"

"Look, I know what you must be thinking. He left after the two of you," the Nara began before glancing over at Kakashi and Iruka. He blushed. "Umm… what I mean to say is…"

"It's okay – they know," Naruto said with a sigh.

With a forced cough, Shikamaru continued. "Okay, then – he left after you two had sex – it's only natural that you'd blame yourself. I want you to know that's not the case, though. You had no way of knowing how he'd react. As far as you knew, he was okay with it. I wouldn't be surprised if even_ Sasuke_ thought he was okay with it. You can't help it if he panicked a bit once he realized the significance of what he'd done."

Naruto bit his lip. "I know that… but if I hadn't mentioned it to begin with…"

"Then it would've happened later on. Sasuke had to face this sooner or later, and I'm pretty sure, deep down, he knew that," Shikamaru said, shaking his head. "And then there's the whole thing with Itachi. That's what pushed him over the edge, of course."

The blond nodded grimly. "I still can't believe it. Itachi seemed like a nice enough guy from what I've seen. A bit of a jerk, but still an okay guy, I guess."

"It just goes to show you, you can't always tell who someone is based on their appearances. Just like with Sasuke – he seemed fine to us, but deep down he had all of this going on. We had no idea," Shikamaru said, furrowing his brow in frustration. "I just wish he had talked to me about this – about what was going through his mind. He usually has no problem opening up to me… at least, that's what I thought. Who knows what else he's been keeping to himself all this time, though?"

"How could you have known? You've helped him so much, Shikamaru – I'm sure he's told you more about himself than just about anyone else," Naruto responded in an attempt to comfort the wise teen.

"Maybe, but I still failed him when he needed me the most. I should've been there for him… I could've talked to him about it. He could've told me what he thought about sex – whether he was anxious, eager, all that. It might've helped him out."

"I doubt it," Kakashi replied in a zombie-like monotone. "I'm pretty sure Sasuke liked to discuss that kind of stuff with O – love, sex, etc…"

"But… we talked about his relationship with Naruto from time to time…" Shikamaru replied, shocked by this revelation.

"I'm sure he talked about it with O, first," Kakashi murmured. "You know how Sasuke is – he would never tell one person all about himself. He likes to split it up among several confidants."

Naruto nodded. He had definitely noticed that about Sasuke. While he would appear to be open, he'd always keep something to himself. It was that fear of letting someone in too close – of being forced to rely on someone, only to have them be taken away. Though Naruto thought he had learned a lot about Sasuke, from his parents to his feelings towards Itachi, he realized now just how little he really knew. What was Sasuke thinking on a day-to-day basis? Yes, he knew Sasuke's interests, his favorite things, but what was going on inside his head? How much of everything Sasuke said was just an act?

_No… I _know_ who Sasuke is… he couldn't possibly hide that from me, even if he wanted to. I just… want him to open up to me more. No, not just to me, but to everyone. I want to bring out the Sasuke he's hiding deep inside…_

Shikamaru seemed to snap out of his momentary daze. "Well… even if it wouldn't have helped, I should have been there for him. He was looking for us… he tried you, Kakashi, and then he tried Itachi before running to Orochimaru. He never even considered me – I was too busy with Temari…"

"Don't be so hard on yourself," Naruto said, chastising the other teen. "You have your own life to live. You know that if Sasuke really needed you, you'd be there for him in a heartbeat. You're here now, after all."

Shikamaru sighed. "Let's just hope it's not too late."

It was amazing, hearing Shikamaru voice that fear – the one that everyone in the room was thinking as they sat waiting. That they'd never get the chance to talk to Sasuke, to get him to open up, to help him through whatever troubles he had. That this might be the end for him.

_I… I don't want him to die… there's so much left for us to do. I want to grow old with him, to spend every waking moment of my life with him. He can't die now… he can't…_

Naruto's eyes widened in sudden realization. This was exactly how Sasuke must've felt – cold, hollow, and afraid. And it wasn't just a passing thought, like it was with Naruto. It wasn't just a fear that came during a time of crisis. No, this was how Sasuke felt all the time – constantly worried that all the people he cared about would be snatched away. Naruto shuddered at the thought.

_How can he even live like that? And for so many years…_

"It's not too late," Naruto said with determination. "He's going to be okay – like you said. And we're going to make sure he doesn't suffer ever again."

Shikamaru smiled. "You're right. I should listen to my own advice more often."

They both laughed genuinely – it was a nice break from the gloomy atmosphere of the rest of the room. At first they just chuckled a bit, but before long they were laughing hysterically, for reasons neither of them could quite figure out. Maybe it was just their way of relieving the pent up stress, or maybe they had finally lost their minds – they weren't sure. But soon, having brought themselves to joyful tears, they both sighed and tried to regain their composure.

"Wow… can you imagine if he'd seen us just now?" Naruto asked, drying his cheeks.

"He'd probably just shake his head with that little smirk of his. The 'that looks like fun, but I'm too cool to take part in it myself" smirk."

"Exactly!" Naruto replied, sitting back in his chair. "I remember the last time he gave me that look. It was back at Lake Konoha, when I suggested we go skinny-dipping."

Sitting beside the blond, Iruka raised an eyebrow, but said nothing. Shikamaru nodded. "I see… so _that's_ why you were out there naked. Someone stole your clothes, I'm guessing?"

"You bet – and I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't go blabbing this to everyone."

"I'm afraid I can't do that. As soon as I get the chance, Choji's gonna hear _all_ about this one," the Nara responded with a grin. "But go on."

"Well, when I started stripping off, he just waited a bit with that smirk of his before he finally joined me," Naruto continued, shooting his friend a quick glare. "He ended up loving it, of course, but for a moment he thought he was above that kind of fun."

"But you got him to do it," Shikamaru concluded, eyeing the other teen in admiration. "That's quite an achievement, really."

"Are you saying you never got him to move out of his comfort zone like that?"

"No, I never did. Then again, I never really tried – it was too troublesome. I could get him to open up about his problems a bit, but you've taken it a step further. He's changed because of you, Naruto – in a good way," Shikamaru continued, his eyes growing somewhat misty. "You may not be able to see it as well, but it's obvious to me. He's happier now. When he'd talk to me before, he was always so negative. It was always about how much he hated the fangirls, how Itachi was an asshole, or how he just generally was sick of everything. He'd vent about his irritation at everything. Nowadays, though, well… you feature prominently, of course."

"He has good taste."

"Well… that's up for debate. In any case, he's more positive. Yes, he still talks about some of the same things – Itachi, fangirls, etcetera – but it's with a hopeful frame of mind. He's annoyed with the fangirls because he has someone he cares about and doesn't need them chasing him around. He's angry with Itachi because Sasuke sees him as an obstacle between the two of you. And as for his desire to be alone… well, it's no longer about the fear of losing what relationships he might have, but rather the risk of losing what he's found," Shikamaru said, laying a hand on Naruto's shoulder. "You're precious to him, Naruto. I want you to know that."

Naruto smiled and wiped a tear out of his eye. "Thank you… but it's not just me that's precious to him. He always talks about you, too. You, Kakashi… all of us – we've all grown on him."

"Speaking of which," Shikamaru mused, pulling out his cell phone. "Choji should be here with the others by now."

"The others?"

"Of course – you didn't think I was coming all by myself, did you? I had Choji round up the rest of the gang while I hurried on over." Dialing a number, the Nara smirked as he placed the phone up to his ear. "Choji! How's the search going?"

There was a pause. "Great! We're up on the second floor – I'll be waiting by the elevator. Yes, there's a vending machine. Yes, they have chips. Yes, I'll pay. Anything else? All right, then – see you in a few." With a sigh, Shikamaru ended the call and shoved his phone back into his pocket. "Troublesome…"

Naruto was a bit confused from hearing only one side of the conversation, and watched Shikamaru curiously. Instead of explaining himself, the lazy genius merely smiled and pointed towards the elevator just as the doors slid open, revealing a crop of exuberant teens. The blond's eyes shimmered with grateful tears.

"Choji! Kiba! Lee! Gaara! What are you all doing here?" Naruto asked, rushing over to greet his friends.

"What do you think? We're here to see Sasuke," Kiba replied, ruffling his housemate's hair playfully.

Gaara nodded in agreement. "You should've called us. Lee and I were just on the other side of the building."

"Yeah! Why were you keeping this all to yourself, anyway?" Lee asked, looking somewhat hurt. "Sasuke's our friend, too."

Naruto didn't know what to say. "Well… it's just… I don't know. I thought you were only his friends through me. Or something like that…"

Kiba scratched his chin. "I guess you have a point – there was a time when that was true, after all. But he's one of the gang, now! You should've let us know that he was in trouble in the first place!"

"He's got a point, Naruto," Shikamaru chimed in, walking up behind the blond. "Honestly, I didn't think I'd hear that he left from _Sakura_ of all people."

"Sakura? You mean she told you, too?"

"Sort of. When she hadn't heard back from you on whether you'd found Sasuke or not, she got worried and started calling around. She asked me if I'd heard anything and, of course, I hadn't even heard that he'd skipped town. Temari and I hopped in her car and were on our way out of the city when we got the call from Kakashi saying he was in the hospital," Shikamaru replied, leaning against the white hospital wall. "Honestly, I think I about lost a year on my life when I found out he was gone. I was ready to form a search party."

"What are you talking about? You _did_ form a search party," Choji mumbled, extending a hand to the Nara. Shikamaru took the hint and dropped a dollar bill in his hand.

"Vending machine's down the hall and to the left, Choji."

As Choji waddled down the corridor, Kiba continued the story. "Choji's right, you know. As soon as Shikamaru here found out Sasuke was missing, Choji started calling around. I started scouring the city on foot, Lee talked to the police to see if they had heard anything… it was kind of amazing how fast we put it all together."

Naruto nodded, but he couldn't help but notice that one name in particular was missing. He glanced over at Gaara, who met the blond's gaze before turning away ashamedly. Naruto knew that look: guilt. Who could blame Gaara for not doing anything, though? There wasn't much he could do when he was still in the hospital for treatment after what happened with his father. They had declared him unstable – he wasn't allowed to leave the building until after the trial the next week. Naruto could only imagine what was going through his head – here, his entire future was at stake, and to make things worse, a friend's life was in danger. It was a lot of pressure, and Naruto could only imagine the helplessness Gaara must've been feeling.

Still, Naruto wondered why Gaara seemed so particularly quiet. On the one hand, it seemed to confirm the blond's suspicions, but on the other, it made him wonder whether he was somehow misreading the redhead's mind. Rather than consider it further, however, Naruto was jerked back to reality as another Kiba piped up.

"So… how is he?"

The others all looked around awkwardly. This was the question they had been dancing around since they emerged from the elevator, the one that was on all their minds, but they were too afraid to ask. Naruto could only shrug helplessly, though.

"We haven't heard anything for hours."

"What exactly happened, anyway?" Choji asked before shoving a handful of chips into his mouth. Apparently he had rejoined the group during Naruto's daze.

"We're not entirely sure," Naruto responded, shaking his head despondently. "Kabuto and Sasuke are the only ones that survived. Two of the band members died instantly, and O joined them not long after we found him. From what Kabuto's told us, they somehow swerved in front of a truck in the rain, which knocked them off the road. He's still pretty shaken up, though – he and O were close, I guess."

"Where is he? This Kabuto guy?" Lee asked with a sort of innocent curiosity.

"He's down at the police station. They wanted to get his side of the story down while they search for the trucker that hit them. With three people dead, they have to set the record straight."

"I see… that's intense," Choji said between bites. "Three people… let's just hope it stays at three, I guess."

Naruto forced a smile. "He'll be fine! It's like Shikamaru said earlier – Sasuke's not going to die this easily."

Though the others nodded with similar guarded optimism, it was clear that Naruto was trying just as hard to convince himself as the others. He could see it in their eyes – the doubt. After all, they had seen firsthand that, at times, the Uchiha could be stronger than anyone. He was immune to taunting, and he didn't care what anyone thought of him. He was set in his ways, and wouldn't change them for just anyone. At the same time, though, this was a weakness. If anything forced him out of those habits and made him lose control, he'd feel overwhelmed. Something as big as the past few days' events could break him, and they all knew it. Even if Sasuke's injuries didn't kill him, his despair still could.

Thus, it was not only Gaara whose eyes were filled with guilt. Kiba, Lee, Choji, Shikamaru – not to mention Naruto himself – they all felt as though they had failed Sasuke. Though it was comforting to think that they couldn't possibly have known what the Uchiha was thinking, or what he was going to do, the fact remained that they _should_ have known. There must've been a sign _somewhere_ that could've tipped them off if they had only been paying attention – a change in mood, actions, words – anything that might uncover the growing rift between happiness and the fear of losing it.

Unfortunately, if there had been any such signs, they had missed them, and it was too late to change anything now. All they could do was wait and pray.

"Excuse me, are you Mr. Uchiha's friends and family?" a somewhat timid orderly asked, poking her head out into the hallway.

Naruto and his friends were stunned by this sudden intrusion. Kakashi, on the other hand, seemed to spring to life, hopping out of his chair in anxious excitement.

"Yes! Yes, we are!" the man exclaimed, seizing the orderly by the shoulders. "Tell me, is it good news? Oh, God, please tell me it's good news!"

The orderly smiled nervously. "H-he just woke up. Would you like to see him?"

With a shriek, the orderly was nearly trampled as Kakashi rushed into the Uchiha's room, dragging Iruka behind him. Kiba and the others followed close behind, leaving only Naruto behind in the hallway.

"Aren't you coming?" Shikamaru asked, leaning against the doorframe.

"I'll be there in just a minute. I… I want to talk to him alone," Naruto confessed as he plopped down on the plastic hospital chair.

"I understand," the Nara replied before stepping inside.

Naruto sighed.

_I have to ask him once and for all. Nor more doubt…_

XXXXX

It was bright.

It was warm.

And his head hurt like hell.

These were the first few things Sasuke was aware of immediately upon regaining consciousness. He wasn't sure what exactly it meant. For a moment or two, he thought he was dead. As his eyes began to focus, though, this possibility was quickly eliminated, for he soon found faces he recognized looming over him. A lot of faces. Kakashi's jumped out at him first with his distinct mask. Then there was Shikamaru. And Choji. And Kiba, Lee, Gaara, and Iruka. Sasuke scanned the faces again, this time somewhat panicked.

_Where is he?_

"He's outside," Shikamaru said, as if he had read the teen's thoughts. "He wanted to wait a minute so he could have some alone time."

Sasuke only stared at his friend while he processed this bit of information. Naruto wanted to talk to him in private. More importantly, he didn't want to even _see_ Sasuke with their friends around.

_He must've been crushed by what happened. Maybe I pushed him over the edge and he wants to end it… I wouldn't want to say that in front of others, that's for sure. Then again, it could the complete opposite. Either way, the fact that he wants to talk to me alone means it must be something big._

Again, Sasuke's head seared with pain, causing him to cry out a bit. Kakashi looked particularly concerned, and quickly rushed to the teen's side. "Are you okay, Sasuke?"

Taking deep breaths, Sasuke gradually recovered from the blinding pain and gradually became aware of his surroundings. Everything in the room was white, from the bed sheets to the walls, leading him to believe that he was in a hospital. This was confirmed by his powder blue gown, which he wouldn't be caught dead in under any other circumstances. Sasuke nodded. "I'm fine, really… what the hell happened, exactly?"

Kakashi looked concerned. "You don't remember?"

"I don't have amnesia, Kakashi. I was _unconscious,_" the Uchiha snapped irritably as he struggled to ignore another headache. "Would you just tell me already?"

Though the silver-haired teacher hesitated for a moment, he eventually closed his eyes solemnly, saying, "There was an accident. The van swerved into a semi truck… it wasn't pretty."

Almost immediately, the Uchiha's eyes snapped open in a moment of recognition. "The crash! That's right – just before I blacked out… I saw Kidomaru drift in front of the truck…" After voicing his thoughts aloud in this manner for a moment, Sasuke was struck by horrific thought. "What happened to O and the others? Where are they?"

Shikamaru and the others exchanged nervous glances, not knowing quite what to say. Choji tried to look preoccupied by shoving chips in his mouth, Lee suddenly felt the urge to tie his shoes, and Kiba forced a cough. By the time Kakashi decided to speak the truth, he had only vocalized what their silence had already confirmed.

"They didn't make it," Kakashi said, kneeling beside the teen as he held his hand. "From what Kabuto's told us, Kidomaru and Tayuya died almost instantly after the crash…"

Sasuke felt a glimmer of hope within as he sat up excitedly. "Kabuto's alive? Then what about O? Where's he?"

Kakashi's eyes shifted to the side. "He had some internal injuries. From what I understand, he was able to walk and helped drag you over to safety in a cave. He must've been moving using his willpower alone, though, because he had a very deep wound – it looked like it punctured his organs. He… he spent his remaining energy trying to keep you warm. He died protecting you, Sasuke."

This revelation nearly knocked the wind out of Sasuke. He couldn't do anything but stare at the hospital wall, his vision growing fuzzy. O had died trying to save him – he'd paid the ultimate sacrifice.

_And now he's gone. I thought he would just be gone for a while with Sound Village… now I'll never see him again. Gone forever._

Gritting his teeth, the Uchiha slammed his hand on the bed's railing, shouting, "DAMMIT! Why does this always happen to me? Why does _everyone _around me fucking _die_?"

"Sasuke, don't say that… there was nothing you could've done," Kakashi began in an attempt to comfort the teen, only to have his hand slapped away.

"THAT'S THE WHOLE POINT!" Sasuke exclaimed, shooting the teacher a frosty glare. "He was doomed the minute he got close to me! I'm cursed! I told you I was better off alone! I _tried_ to be alone so I wouldn't have to deal with any of this bullshit again, but no! You all insisted on getting close! _ALL OF YOU!_"

The teen hurled his pillow at Shikamaru who deftly dodged it, causing it to fly instead into a bewildered Choji's face. The Nara didn't skip a beat, though, and responded in a restrained manner. "Sasuke, just calm down…"

"Calm down? Why the hell should I calm down? I didn't ask for you to come here – just get the hell out! All of you! Get out now!" Sasuke ordered as he hurled another pillow. With nothing left to throw, however, the Uchiha eventually collapsed into a ball, tears of frustration running down his face. "Leave… before I hurt you, too…"

Sasuke had never been more disgusted with himself in his life than he was at that moment. Not only was he weeping openly in front of his friends – assuming he could still call them that after his little tirade – he had taken out his emotional problems on the people who were trying to help him. He had told them all that he never wanted them around – that they were the reason he was so miserable.

Of course, that wasn't true. On the contrary, they were all he had left. They were the people keeping him from utter despair. Losing O was painful – he had been a guide to Sasuke. A mentor, in a sense. Now, when Sasuke had a dilemma, who was he to turn to? The answer was right before his eyes. This wasn't _like_ losing his parents. He wasn't alone.

"Sasuke… should we leave?" Kakashi asked after a moment, his voice still soft and caring, as if the Uchiha's outburst had never happened.

"No… please stay. I don't want to be alone… don't leave me..."

Shikamaru took a step forward and joined Kakashi at his friend's side. "Don't worry – we'll stay as long as you want."

Choji, Kiba, Gaara, Lee, and Iruka gathered around as well, and soon the Uchiha was surrounded by caring eyes. Though it was certainly comforting to know they were there for him, it did little to ease the pain of O's death. Gripping the bed sheets tightly, Sasuke tried to fight back the tears as they continued to flow. "I'm sorry… it's just… it's not fair. Why did he have to die, too?"

Kakashi ran a hand through teen's black hair, whispering, "Shh… shh… it's okay, Sasuke. I don't know what to tell you – I suppose all things happen for a reason. It's up to you to find the meaning in what life hands you."

"Is this some sort of test? Is that what you're saying? That I haven't been through enough as it is!" Sasuke exclaimed, his hands trembling as he gripped the sheets tighter. "Can't you see? It's like… every time I get close to someone, they either die or betray me or… _something!_ My parents… Itachi… now O. How am I supposed to move on when I can't be sure whether you'll leave me too?"

It hurt for Sasuke to say that. He didn't want to think of that possibility, and he hated to tell his morbid ideas to the people he cared about. It was the truth, though. It was what had lingered in the back of his mind ever since his parents died – that things like life and death were beyond his control. They were mysterious forces, things that could come and go at will, and that frightened Sasuke like nothing else.

"Do you remember what you told me a few weeks ago? When I was struggling to move on from Obito?" Kakashi asked suddenly, with a gentle smile. "You told me that I _couldn't_ move on – that his death, and the feelings I had for him, would live on in me forever. I took that to heart, Sasuke. I still think about him every day, and it hurts. But, at the same time, I'm happy now. I have Iruka. I have a _son._"

_A son?_

The realization hit Sasuke hard. Itachi was most likely going to prison for the rest of his life, unless he could find one hell of a lawyer (and since Johnnie Cochran was dead, that wasn't particularly likely). He needed a guardian, and it was clear that Kakashi intended to fulfill that role. Sasuke wasn't about to stop him, either. Still, he was not done arguing. "And what would you have done if you'd lost your son just now? What if I hadn't woken up? Face it – you would've been better off not knowing me. The pain would've been too great."

"That's _enough_!" Gaara interrupted, breaking his silence with a snarl. "How _dare_ you say that to him, after all he and Naruto went through to make sure you were brought back alive. After what _O_ did for you! If they thought they'd be better off without you, would they have gone through all that? Spent the whole night worrying to death, praying that you'd pull through?"

"Exactly! They prayed I'd pull through because the alternative would be too painful. They wanted me alive to spare them the pain of losing me!"

"Just how selfish _are_ you, Uchiha?" the redhead snapped with frightening ferocity. "Get it through your thick head – you're not the only one you matter to! Would they have been crushed if you'd died in the crash? YES! Of course they would have, but that's not the point. They know the risks of life – the more connections you make, the more likely you are to be hurt by death or betrayal. But the risk is _worth it_ for the joys those relationships bring."

"How can you possibly say that? Everyone you've ever loved has only shown you hate. Just look at your dad!" Sasuke challenged with a triumphant air.

"You're right – my dad and I didn't get along all that well. I still loved him, though, just like I love the rest of my family, and my friends," Gaara responded, not willing to give into Sasuke's provocation. "It hurt to be turned down by Naruto, too, but that doesn't mean I couldn't love someone else."

Sasuke glanced over at a beaming Lee before coming up with a counterargument. "So you're saying, even after what happened with your dad, you wouldn't be better off without ever having known him?"

"Exactly," the redhead said simply. "He helped make me who I am today. We're shaped by our relationships and our experiences. Everything that's happened in your life has helped mold you into the person we know and love. Your parents, Itachi, O – they're all a key part of who you are, and so are we. You can't just try to ignore that because you're afraid of losing us – we won't let you."

The rest of the group nodded in agreement as a slight smirk crossed Gaara's typically stolid features. It was only then, seeing his friends and family bobbing their heads in unison, that Sasuke realized how mistaken he had been in his understanding of relationships. He couldn't just avoid the people he cared about, because relationships weren't one-way streets. Even if he tried to flee, as he had when he left with O for Suna, the people he knew and loved would inevitably come after him. It worked in both directions, and the result was a bond more powerful than death.

The Uchiha's eyes widened as he remembered the words O had passed on to him. "Like a katamari…"

"You must've hit your head harder than we thought," Shikamaru said with a chuckle as the others gave the teen puzzled looks. "You're sure you don't need to lie down for a bit?"

"No, I'm fine," Sasuke concluded after a moment. He hesitated briefly before continuing, releasing his firm hold on the sheets. "If you don't mind, though, I'd like to speak with Naruto for a bit."

Kakashi ruffled Sasuke's hair with a smile. "I understand. Let's leave them alone, guys."

With a few murmurs, the rest of the group rose and stepped out of Sasuke's room, with the exception of Shikamaru, who gave the raven-haired teen a quick thumbs up. "Good luck, Sasuke."

"Thanks," was all the Uchiha could manage, a cold sweat forming on his bandaged brow.

_It's time… he has to know the truth…_

* * *

Dun-dun-dunnnnn! The boyfriends are about to meet, and they're both men on a mission. What will happen when these separated lovers speak face-to-face after this ordeal? Find out in the next chapter of _For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him_, and remember - review!


	42. Jubilation

Short chapter this time - sorry! I think it works best as a simpler scene, though. Hopefully you'll agree! Thank you all for your patience, for reading, and for reviewing. Now, without further ado, on with the chapter!

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42. Jubilation

They were both silent. As Naruto entered the room, he didn't even look at Sasuke. His head was hung low as he shut the door slowly, the slight creak it produced and the beeping machinery around Sasuke being the only noises in the room.

Sasuke couldn't even bear to look at the blond as he stood before the sealed door. He knew exactly how Naruto would look – hurt, betrayed, lost, alone, heartbroken. And it was all his fault. Naruto hadn't deserved to be put through all of that. He was just another victim of Sasuke's selfishness. But the Uchiha realized this now. It was time to set things straight.

"Naruto, I…"

"YOU ASS!"

Before Sasuke could process this outburst, he was left stunned as Naruto's fist collided with his cheek, sending the raven-haired teen flying back into his pillow. Rubbing his cheek, Sasuke spit out a bit of blood before glancing up at Naruto in momentary indignation. His ire vanished, however, upon meeting the blond's eyes.

What he saw in those deep, blue pools was far worse than he'd ever imagined. Yes, the disappointment and hurt were there, but that wasn't what was shocking. Instead, it was the anger and, more importantly, the fear in Naruto's eyes that made Sasuke's blood run cold. The hot tears on Naruto's face made it perfectly clear just how tormented he'd been over the past day, and though the vulpine boy tried to remain strong, his shaking fist and slightly quivering lip betrayed his elevated emotions.

"I deserved that," Sasuke concluded, glancing awkwardly to the side.

"You're damn right, you did," Naruto replied with a barely noticeable hiccup in his voice.

"Would you like to sit down?" Sasuke asked, sliding over to one side of the bed while patting the newly available space.

Nodding, Naruto plopped down on the bed and stared out the window at the lights of nighttime Konoha. He hesitated a moment, then asked the question Sasuke had been anticipating ever since he entered the room.

"Why did you leave?"

That was the heart of the matter, wasn't it? All of Naruto's frustration, sorrow, and concern were wrapped up into those four words. Unfortunately, Sasuke didn't have such a concise answer.

"I… I don't know," Sasuke replied, watching as a pigeon flew off into the night from the window ledge. "I guess I was overwhelmed."

"Was it the sex?" Naruto asked with a slight blush.

"You were great, if that's what you're asking," Sasuke said before wincing at a sudden wave of pain from his posterior. "Though I wish I'd _known_ it was going to hurt like hell."

Naruto forced a laugh, "Sorry about that."

There was a lengthy pause, which Sasuke struggled to fill. "It's my fault, you know. I knew it was too soon, but I wanted to go through with it anyway."

"And I should've realized you weren't ready yet."

"You're right – you should've," the Uchiha said, causing the blond to look up in surprise. "But only because I should've told you what I was thinking."

Naruto nodded, but it was clear his mind was elsewhere. For a few moments, he periodically opened his mouth as if to speak, only to quickly close it shortly afterwards, as if he was afraid to say what was on his mind. It was after nearly a minute of this that he spoke up, his voice somewhat choked.

"Do… do you hate me?"

The question cut through Sasuke like a knife. If he hadn't felt guilty before, he certainly did now. How long had that thought been stirring in the back of Naruto's head? How long had Sasuke _allowed_ that thought to remain? To anyone else, Naruto would've seemed unusually calm in asking such a troubling question, but to Sasuke, the blond's inner fears and turmoil were written all over his face, visible even through his stolid mask.

_How could I let him worry like this? Was I really that afraid of losing him that I'd let him suffer? He's right… I _am_ an ass…_

Sasuke could tell that his lengthy pause was only making Naruto worry all the more, so he decided to speak the truth. "No. I don't hate you. That would've made things easy," he said with a sigh, noticing the mixture of relief and confusion in Naruto's expression.

"Then why? Why did you run away?"

Sasuke suddenly found himself incredibly frustrated. Not with Naruto – it wasn't _his_ fault Sasuke had surround himself with nearly impenetrable emotional walls – but rather with himself. With the Sasuke who did everything in his power to shut out the rest of the world. His fists clenched.

_No more!_

"Because I love you, dammit!"

Naruto looked like a deer caught in the headlights. His head jerked to the side, and all he could do was stare at the Uchiha unblinkingly. Just when Sasuke was beginning to grow uncomfortable under this stare, Naruto finally spoke up. "Wh-what did you say?"

Sasuke had to consider this for a moment. _Had_ he just said what he thought he'd said? _Had_ he voiced the feelings he'd been keeping deep inside, made known the degree to which he cared for Naruto? He swallowed hard.

"I said… I love you, Naruto."

It was a relief, finally being able to say those simple words. Before Sasuke had time to dwell on the matter, though, he was suddenly tackled back onto the bed as Naruto came in for an overly enthusiastic kiss. Astonished by this assault on his lips, Sasuke soon pushed the blond away, gasping for breath.

"What the hell?"

Naruto grinned. "Sorry, I couldn't help it. I've been waiting so long to hear you say that…"

Sasuke only stared at his boyfriend, as he had only just then realized that Naruto was crying. Along with his broad smile, tears of joy had begun to stain his cheeks. Again, the blond was unable to contain himself and wrapped his arms around Sasuke, pulling the Uchiha into a tight embrace. Sasuke hugged him back, running one hand through Naruto's golden locks.

"I didn't realize how much it meant to you…" he whispered, breathing in Naruto's distinct, comforting musk.

"It's silly, I know… but somehow hearing you actually _say_ it," Naruto began, only to break down mid-sentence. There was nothing to say – his tears said it all.

"Well, I mean it. I love you, Naruto, and I never want to let you go," Sasuke continued, his own tears joining his boyfriends. Tears of relief, now that he had finally gotten this off his chest. Tears of joy, now that he was back in his lover's arms. And tears of sadness, that he had spent the past month worrying, when he could've been enjoying life with his true love.

Naruto rubbed his face up and down against Sasuke's gown. "Just promise you'll never leave me again."

"Only if you never leave me."

They waited in silence for a time, each enjoying the feel of the other in his arms. After a moment, they shared a short, sweet kiss, while Naruto's hand moved playfully down Sasuke's bare back through the opening in his gown. When his hand met fabric around the Uchiha's butt, however, Naruto pulled out of the kiss with a smirk.

"I want my underwear back, by the way."

Sasuke's lips curled into a devilish smile. "You'll have to take them off, first."

"With pleasure," Naruto whispered, leaning in to nibble gently on the raven-haired teen's ear while sliding his hand inside the boxerbriefs.

"I see the two of you have made up."

Looking up in horror, Naruto and Sasuke found Shikamaru standing in the doorway, his head turned awkwardly to the side. Sasuke fumed. "Do you mind?"

"Not at all – I was just going to tell you that the nurse needs to come and check on your wound, Sasuke. I guess you guys could continue, but she might get in the way…"

The couple's eyes met. "Let's finish this later," they said in unison.

With that, a furiously blushing Naruto climbed off of Sasuke and started for the door. Meanwhile, an equally red Sasuke lay down on the bed and sighed.

_Interrupted again… some things never change, I guess._

* * *

Finally, he comes out and says it! Only took him 42 chapters... but what's in store for our heroes now? Sasuke's recovery will likely take a little while - at least physically. But there's still the matter of Orochimaru's death that Sasuke has to deal with. And what about the new situation with Iruka and Kakashi? And, the biggie - what about Itachi and the Uchiha Corporation? There's some big changes ahead - stay tuned to find out what happens next time in _For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him_, and remember: review!


	43. Yes, the Worst is Over Now

Hello, dear readers. New chapter today - longer than the last one, at least, which is a plus. Thanks for your patience - it's been a busy summer thus far. As usual, I want to thank you all for reading and reviewing. Now, without further ado, on with the chapter!

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43. Yes, the Worst is Over Now

Kakashi stared at the form before him, the pen in his hand shaking. He had read the document three times from top to bottom, but he still couldn't believe what he was about to do. Glancing up, he found Jiraiya's soft smile staring back at him. Beside him was Iruka, looking on with full support. Above them, the single light in the otherwise bland room of the police station buzzed faintly.

The teacher stared back down at the form. "All I have to do is sign here?"

Jiraiya nodded. "That's right. Then the state will hand over custody of Sasuke and name you his adoptive father. I can give you a minute if you're not sure…"

"No, I've already made my decision," Kakashi interrupted hurriedly. "It just feels so strange. To think that it's actually happening…"

"I know what you mean. It's a shame it's come down to this, really, but I think it'll be for the best. You'll be there for Sasuke more than Itachi ever was."

Kakashi shook his head solemnly. He truly did wish that this could be a happier occasion, especially for Sasuke. He appeared to be taking it well, but Kakashi suspected that this was because Sasuke wasn't confronting the issue head on. With all the other recent events in his life, the Uchiha was able to push the matter with his brother off to the side. It would all come to a head soon enough, though, and Kakashi feared how Sasuke would react when it did.

_No… I can't think like that. I'll be there for him when that time comes. We all will._

With a deep breath, Kakashi scrawled his name along the bottom of the page. Jiraiya pulled the form back to his side of the table and extended his hand. "Congratulations, Kakashi."

The teacher sighed in relief as he set down his pen. It hadn't been nearly as difficult as he'd expected. Just a quick signature, and that was it: Sasuke was now his son. He couldn't remember the last time he'd felt such a strange combination of anxiety and excitement.

_Wait… yes I can. It was right after I met Iruka. I was so conflicted, fearing the changes that might occur, but eager to see what those changes might bring…_

And, when he thought about it, the past few weeks _had_ been rather eventful. Sasuke had made friends. He'd fallen in _love_ – or, at the very least, he had a boyfriend. As for Kakashi, he'd found someone himself, someone to fill that whole left by Obito's death. Then, just now, he'd gained a son. More than that, he'd gained something he could call a _family_.

Before Kakashi could even begin to think about a simple, domestic life, though, he knew there was still plenty of business to attend to. Clearly, Jiraiya knew this as well, a serious look crossing his features as he leaned forward across the table.

"All right, Kakashi – I couldn't talk about this until the adoption was complete, but now, as Sasuke's father, there are some things you need to know."

Kakashi's grim looked matched the officer's. "This is about Akatsuki, isn't it?"

Jiraiya nodded, chuckling at the silver-haired man's response. "You're a sharp one, as usual. As I'm sure you've heard by now, it wasn't just Itachi who we arrested the other day. Everyone at the top of Akatsuki – the people behind the merger – they were all involved in some rather nasty business. Murder, blackmail, fraud, identity theft – you name it, they did it. Apparently, it was organized by Tobi – an elaborate plot to create a sort of weapon manufacturing superpower."

"So I've heard, yes."

"Well, needless to say, they've all been arrested, and the Akatuski Corporation has been left in shambles. The individual branches have been scrambling to find replacements for their respective leaders, and their stock has been plummeting all the while. Now, Sasuke was named the heir to the Uchiha Corporation long ago by Itachi, meaning that particular section of the Akatuski conglomerate is currently in his hands. As his father, though, it's ultimately you who has to sign the papers."

"How much have we lost already?" Kakashi asked, already dreading where this conversation was heading.

"Akatsuki is facing bankruptcy," Jiraiya muttered, taking a sip of the coffee beside him. "Consumer confidence has plummeted without any leadership. The Uchiha branch alone has lost hundreds of millions of dollars in just the past few days."

"And Sasuke?"

"He personally stands to lose 50 million dollars."

Kakashi's face went pale. "50 _million?_ But… that's almost his entire fortune!"

"Like I said, the different branches of Akatsuki have been scrambling the past few days to try and salvage their business. It's clear that their reign as the kings of the weapon-manufacturing world is over, though."

The teacher couldn't even speak. What had he gotten himself into? Sasuke had just gone from having everything to nothing overnight. As if the Uchiha didn't have enough to deal with, now he was going broke. Kakashi's hands trembled as he stared down at the table, trying to think of how to deal with this situation. He felt a hand land on his shoulder, however, causing him to look up in surprise. There was Iruka's face, smiling warmly as he clasped Kakashi's hand.

"It'll be all right, Kakashi. We can figure something out."

"But… it's so much money…"

"And since when does money matter? You never talked about it before, and Sasuke doesn't seem like the money-grubbing kind. He may be used to a richer lifestyle, but I think he knows what's truly important in life."

"He's right, you know," Jiraiya chimed in, setting down his coffee mug with a thud. "Sasuke will understand. Even if he loses his fortune, he'll be happy as long as he's not left alone again. That's why I picked you personally, Kakashi – I figured you'd understand that more than anyone else."

Kakashi felt ashamed. Of course Sasuke wouldn't care about the money. There was once a time when he'd worried about taking over the family business, but Kakashi had always detected reluctance in the teen. He didn't _want_ to take over Itachi's role in Akatsuki, but he didn't feel like he had a choice. If anything, losing the business and the money that came with it would be like a clean slate for Sasuke – a chance to start fresh doing what he wanted.

"All right," Kakashi said with renewed determination. "What's the plan, then?"

"The best option I can think of is to dissolve Akatsuki and sell off the individual branches. The government has put in an offer to buy up the different businesses and use them as their own personal military supplier. Obviously, the offer isn't great, but considering the circumstances, I think it's the best you're going to get. The workers for the Uchiha branch would all hold on to their jobs, and with the money from the buyout, Sasuke would be able to pay off his debts."

"Something tells me there's a catch," Iruka added skeptically.

"You're right. The problem is, with the amount the government is offering for Akatsuki's individual branches, Sasuke would only receive enough money to pay off most of his debts. With the way their stock has been plunging, the only way Sasuke can break even is if he sells some of his personal assets."

"Such as…?" Kakashi asked tentatively.

"The Uchiha mansion, and the property that goes with it," Jiraiya concluded as he finished off his coffee. "The way I see it, that would leave him with a couple hundred grand to his name. It would be enough to start a new life in a new house…"

Kakashi sat back in his chair and stared up at the flickering light above. "Well… it's a lot to consider. I'll have to talk it over with Sasuke."

"Of course. I understand," Jiraiya replied as he rose from his chair. "Just remember, if you need any help through this ordeal, all you have to do is call."

"Thanks, Jiraiya. I'll keep that in mind."

XXXXX

Sasuke found himself walking down a seemingly endless corridor blanketed in darkness, with only the occasional flash of lightning illuminating the path before him. It occurred to him as he stepped past a familiar, gothic window that he had been there before – not only that place, but that very time, that _moment_. To call it déjà vu would belittle it – this was more like Sasuke was reliving an experience. Yet, as familiar as it wall was, Sasuke couldn't remember _why_ he recognized this scene.

That is, until he reached the door at the end of the hallway. There, his heart seemed to stop. He knew what was on the other side of that door. He knew what he'd see as soon as he pushed it open, yet he had to move on. With his palms sweating Sasuke turned the knob and swung the door open. There, just as he'd expected, Sasuke found two bodies lying in the center of the room. Another flash of lightning revealed the blood covering the carpet, as well as the gaping wounds in the bodies.

He was by no means surprised at this sight, nor was he appalled. This was simply the way it _should_ have been. He would've been more astonished if he'd walked in to find his parents alive and well. But something was wrong, and Sasuke knew it. He had relived this night time and again in his dreams, and he'd always felt overwhelming terror at seeing his parents lying dead on the floor, the shock causing him to wake with a scream of abject horror.

But not this time. Now, as he stood in the entryway to his parents' bedroom, staring down at their bloodied corpses, he felt absolutely nothing – only acceptance. This was how things were. At least, that's what Sasuke thought, but somewhere inside he knew there was something else going on here.

Another flash of lightning revealed the bodies once more. It was then that Sasuke realized just what was amiss – both of the bodies were men.

_What's going on here?_

Tiptoeing over to the bodies, Sasuke felt sweat run down his face. This wasn't how the dream was supposed to go. Where were his parents? Where was his brother, stolid as always, even under such horrific circumstances? Kneeling down beside the bodies, Sasuke couldn't even breathe as he tried to identify the victims.

Flash.

Sasuke backed up as thunder rattled the windows. He gagged.

_This… this isn't right at all! Why?_

O. Itachi. These were not the faces Sasuke expected. They were not the faces that belonged on those bodies. Sasuke knew this scene so well – it the most horrifying experience of his life – yet, here it was completely perverted. Sasuke wished he could just wake up from whatever terrible nightmare he was having, he wished just the knowledge that it _was_ a dream would be enough to bring him back to reality. As much as he tried, though, the bodies remained there, the dull eyes of O and Itachi staring at him in a ghoulish manner.

"I'm sorry, Sasuke."

The Uchiha's heart jumped as a hand landed on his shoulder. His eyes glistening with horrified tears, Sasuke glanced back to find Naruto staring down at him. To Sasuke's surprise, the blond was crying as well. It wasn't just Naruto standing behind him, either, but Kakashi and Iruka, Shikamaru and Temari, Gaara and Lee, Kiba and Choji – they had all come to comfort him.

Without a word, everyone gathered around Sasuke and knelt down, embracing their Uchiha in a great group hug. At first Sasuke resisted, not wanting their pity, but eventually their warmth overwhelmed him, and he simply let his tears flow. Before him, the bodies of Itachi and O disappeared as he closed his eyes.

_I'm not alone…_

XXXXX

When Sasuke opened his eyes once more, his house had vanished, replaced by the bright, white interior of the Konoha Hospital. His friends were gone. The sun was out. O and Itachi's bodies had vanished. He was awake.

But he was not alone.

Sitting in a chair on the opposite side of the room was Sakura Haruna, who held a pink flower in her hands. She stared down at the petals as she rotated it slowly. How long had she been sitting there, Sasuke wondered, waiting for him to wake up? More importantly, how long had he been asleep? He glanced up at the clock on the wall. It was five o'clock: school was out – that would explain Sakura's presence – and he'd clearly been zonked out for the past 18 hours.

_Better say something before she thinks I'm a zombie or something…_

"Sakura? What are you doing here?"

The girl looked up in surprise, nearly dropping her flower. "Oh! Sasuke! You're awake!" When the Uchiha didn't respond, she glanced down awkwardly again, murmuring, "I… I wanted to apologize."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow quizzically. "Apologize?"

"Yeah," she admitted, biting her lip. "I was the one that told Naruto and the others where you were. Even though you told me to keep it a secret, I just… I thought they needed to know. I didn't mean to betray your trust, Sasuke…"

_Of course… so _that's_ what this is about. I should've known…_

"It's all right, Sakura. That's why I told you to begin with – I thought you'd tell them eventually."

"So… you used me?" Sakura asked, looking quite hurt by this revelation.

"No, it's not like that. I guess I trusted you to do the right thing and tell the others. I wasn't really thinking straight at the time… there was a lot on my mind. The whole thing with Naruto, problems with Kakashi… my brother."

Sakura flinched visibly. Clearly she had heard the news. "I… I see…"

"The truth is, Sakura, I couldn't do it myself. I knew the others had to find out where I was, but I couldn't bear to tell them directly. My brain wanted to, but I didn't have the willpower. I used you as a crutch, because I knew that if I told you where I was going, then the others would find out when they needed to," Sasuke continued, watching as the girl's hurt turned into a look of confusion.

"Then I'm a blabbermouth?"

_Damn… why is it she thinks I'm complimenting her when I'm trying to make fun of her, but when I'm trying to thank her, she thinks I'm a douche?_

"You're an expert at communicating. You could spread the message the fastest, and I knew how you felt about me… I knew you wouldn't hesitate to tell Naruto where I went if you knew it would help me. You didn't disappoint me, Sakura," Sasuke said, trying his best to salvage the train wreck of a conversation. Though Sakura still looked both irked and perplexed, the Uchiha pressed on with sincerity. "To put it simply, Sakura… thank you."

Sakura blinked. "Th-thank you? But why?"

"If you hadn't done what you did, I would've died, Sakura. It might've taken Kabuto an hour to find help, and by then it might've been too late. Since you told Naruto where I went, though – since you did what I was too weak to do myself – I didn't end up bleeding to death out in the middle of nowhere. You saved my life."

That did it. Immediately, Sakura switched from looking somewhat angry to bawling openly as she rushed over to Sasuke, pulling him into a tight embrace. Sasuke didn't even try to push her away this time, because she had earned this moment – she _deserved_ to be close to the boy she had admired for so long. It made Sasuke feel incredibly guilty, knowing that all it took for Sakura to finally get close to him was to save him from an early death.

"I was so scared, Sasuke. When I heard about what happened, I just… I didn't know what to think. What if I had waited too long? I prayed you'd pull through… I didn't want to let you go. I know you'll never love me like I love you, but the truth is I _do_ love you, and I couldn't bear to see anything happen to you and I–"

"Sakura," Sasuke said abruptly, cutting off the girl's ramblings. "I don't understand. Why are you so upset? I'm _thanking_ you."

_Do girls make any sense at all?_

The pink-haired teen sniffled as she pulled herself away from Sasuke, not even daring to look the Uchiha in the eyes. "Because I wasn't going to tell Naruto. I thought if I kept it to myself, then he couldn't have him. I thought, if I couldn't have you, then Naruto shouldn't, either. It… it just hurt so much, knowing that I could never be happy with you like he is. I know I told you I'd accepted it before, but even if I didn't tell anyone about you two, I still couldn't help but feel jealous. I couldn't let him have you!"

"But the important thing is that you _did _tell him…"

"Only because I was afraid of what might happen if I didn't! When I finally called Naruto yesterday, I thought for sure you were long gone. That we'd never see you again," Sakura explained with a hiccup. "And even then, I wasn't doing it for Naruto. I still resented him… but I knew it would be best for you. I'd rather sacrifice my own feelings for you than let you live the rest of your life sad and alone. Even though _I'll_ never be the one happy with you… well, at least you can be happy with Naruto."

Sasuke's heart sunk as he stared into the girl's sorrowful green eyes. Clearly those were the hardest words she had ever said, and Sasuke realized for the first time that the girl's infatuation with him was more than mere puppy love. She truly _did_ love him – she loved him enough to help reunite him with Naruto, just so he could be happy while she remained sad and alone. That took strength. Even though Sasuke wished he could say that he'd do the same for Naruto if he had to, he wasn't so sure deep down inside. Heneeded Naruto – Sakura only _wanted_ Sasuke. She could get on without him, but his absence would be felt in her heart for some time to come.

"I was wrong about you, Sakura. I… I thought you were just another one of those fangirls, but I can see I misjudged you. I should never have put you in that kind of situation – it wasn't fair of me," Sasuke said finally, staring at the monitor beside his bed, lest he felt that sharp pang of regret at the sight of Sakura's mournful eyes. "I can't love you."

"I know… you told me before."

"But I want you to know that it's nothing against you. I meant what I said the other day - you'll make someone very happy one day. I just hope that we can be friends, so I can meet him when that time comes."

Sakura suddenly turned her head to the side, meeting Sasuke's eyes with a look of resolution. "I'm sorry, Sasuke, but I can't do that."

"W-what? Why not?" the Uchiha asked in astonishment.

"Because next time I might not be able to stop myself. I should've known after you came to my house the other day… even though I said I wanted to do what would make you happy, I hesitated on calling Naruto. I let my selfish emotions get in the way, and I know now that I can't stop that. When I think about the mere possibility of being with you, I lose all rational thought. I'd do _anything_ for you, Sasuke – things that I know I'd regret later. That's why I can't be your friend," Sakura concluded with a sigh. "I love you too much to let myself weasel my way into your life."

_I take that back – I was _really_ wrong about her…_

"I see… so that's it, then?" Sasuke asked, watching in awe as the girl set her flower down on the Uchiha's bedspread.

"That's it," she said, turning away as tears leaked from the corners of her eyes. "But… if I should pass you in the halls… could you say 'hi?'"

"I promise."

With that, Sakura left the raven-haired teen's room, determined never to see her love again. Meanwhile, Sasuke simply stared at the flower before him as a petal fell onto the sheets.

_Another time, another place… maybe it would've worked out, Sakura. I can only hope fate will be more kind to you from now on…_

_xxxxxxxxxxx_

And, there you have it! Sakura has made her confession and made peace with Sasuke, knowing that she'll never be able to have the boy of her dreams. So sad, but then again, she hardly deserved him after her underhanded tactics earlier in the story. Hopefully she'll find happiness one day. As for Kakashi, he's now officially Sasuke's father, but what changes will this bring? And what about the situation with Akatsuki? Sasuke's in for some serious changes, something that's never gone over particularly well with the Uchiha. How will he handle this new situation? Find out in the next chapter of _For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him!_


	44. Coo Coo Cachoo

Okay, so new chapter. This one is actually longer than the past few, which is a nice change of pace. More for you all to enjoy, at least. I felt like this chapter was stronger overall, too. We wrap up the chapter with O, and introduce a new mini plot point involving Gaara. As usual, thank you all for reading and reviewing, and without further ado, on with the chapter!

* * *

44. Coo Coo Ca-choo

It had been a rough few days for Naruto. The ordeal with Sasuke had been quite draining, and the fact that the blond had barely been able to see him since the weekend only made things worse. Now it was Thursday, and he still had only seen his boyfriend for a few hours throughout the week.

_Those Nazis at the hospital. 'Visiting hours ended fifteen minutes ago' – well, so did school! How am I supposed to see him!_

The thought enraged Naruto to no end. So, it was with a great sense of urgency that the blond darted down the streets after school. Sasuke was supposed to be released today – Kakashi was going to pick him up – and Naruto was determined to be there, nurses and their rules be damned.

So, ten minutes and several near misses with passing cars later, Naruto arrived at the hospital. No sooner had he entered the front door, however, than he was stopped by a man with a long blond ponytail. The vulpine boy eyed the man curiously, contemplating whether he should push him out of his way or just try glaring at him to death. Before he could decide, he realized just why the man seemed so familiar – he looked just like Ino.

"You're Naruto Uzumaki, correct?" the man asked in an authoritative manner.

"And you're Mr. Yamanaka," Naruto replied suspiciously.

"You're very observant, aren't you? That's just what I like to see," Inoichi Yamanaka replied with a satisfied smile. "I'll have you know you're quite hard to get a hold of. Gaara told me you'd probably show up here after school, though. Glad I listened to him."

"Gaara sent you? But… why?"

"I'm his lawyer. The trial for his father's murder is this Saturday, you know – and you're a key witness," Inoichi responded as he turned around, waving for Naruto to follow. "Only you and Gaara know exactly what happened on the bridge last night. Your testimony is key to judging his frame of mind following his father's death."

"You need me to testify?"

"It's for Gaara. Look, Naruto, I know the prosecutor in this case. Ibiki's a real hardass – he's not going to go easy on Gaara just because he's a kid. He'll try to make Gaara look like some sort of monster, and we have to do everything in our power to show that he's not – that _he's _the real victim in this case."

Naruto shook his head; this week just kept getting worse and worse. "I'll do what I have to do."

"Great. I've already collected the necessary information from Gaara and Lee. They've told me everything they could about this case. What Mr. Subakuno was like that night, what exactly they remember happening. I just need you to tell me what happened between you and Gaara on top of that bridge," Inoichi concluded as he pushed a seemingly random door open along the hospital corridor, revealing a strangely vacant room.

Naruto followed the lawyer inside and sat down on the empty bed, while Inoichi plopped down on a padded chair. This was certainly not how Naruto had pictured his afternoon. He was supposed to drive home with Sasuke, so they could finally catch up. They had almost a week's worth of making out to make up, a fact that greatly annoyed the blond. Nevertheless, he knew he was doing the right thing. Gaara needed him if he was to have a future – he couldn't turn his back on a friend, regardless of how anxious and horny he was.

"All right, Naruto, let's start from the beginning. What happened that night?" Inoichi asked, pulling out a notebook from his back pocket. He clicked the pen and waited expectantly for the teen's response.

"You mean at the bridge?"

"Yes, unless you know something else, that is."

Naruto considered this for a moment, shifting uncomfortably on the bed. "Well… I knew he and Lee were together before this all happened."

"Is that so? How long were they dating before that night?" Inoichi asked, scribbling a quick note.

"Does it really matter?"

"As a matter of fact, it does. If Mr. Subakuno knew about their relationship before this incident, then we can't argue that he attacked Gaara in an act of passion upon learning their secret. The longer they've been dating, the more likely it is that Mr. Subakuno already knew that they were in a relationship."

"But we know what really happened! Mr. Subakuno _did_ attack Gaara when he caught the two of them together, they said so themselves…" Naruto protested, only to be cut off quickly by the lawyer.

"Yes, but Ibiki will try to convince the jury that they're lying. It's my job to see how people think – from what I can see, that's going to be the backbone of Ibiki's prosecution. He'll claim that Gaara killed his father, and that they're both trying to cover it up as an act of self-defense. Lee's in love with Gaara, so it's not hard to believe that he'd lie for him."

Naruto eyed the man suspiciously, leaning forward slightly. "You don't trust them?"

"I _do_ trust them, Naruto. All I'm saying is that the possibility for doubt is there," Inoichi said, looking up from his notebook resolutely.

The teen sighed and lay back on the bed, staring up at the speckled ceiling tiles. He could almost play connect-the-dots with them, forming a variety of shapes in his head. A raccoon, a fox, a broken heart. "Well, to answer your question, he and Lee had been dating for about a week before Mr. Subakuno died."

"Only a week? What makes you so sure?" Inoichi said, raising an eyebrow skeptically.

"Because Gaara was in love with _me_ before then."

The lawyer looked to the side awkwardly. "I see… did he tell you this himself, or was this more something you ascertained on your own?"

_What is this guy, thick? Does he want me to spell it out for him, or what?_

"He showed me."

"I don't follow…"

Naruto fumed. "He _kissed_ me! He told me he had something to important to tell me, and he kissed me, just like that."

"And, from the way you're talking about it, I'm guessing you turned him down?" Inoichi asked as he made a few more notes in his book.

"I was already in a relationship at the time. He took it pretty hard – he told me I was the only one for him, and that he had to kiss me, just once, to know what it was like. So, yes, he told me that he loved me in the most direct way possible."

"And that was only a week before this whole thing happened. So that means Gaara met Lee and fell in love with him in just that short period of time? Do you know why? Because Ibiki will certainly be a skeptic of any sort of 'love at first sight' story."

Naruto frowned, turning his head to the side in thought. "I really don't know – it surprised me, too. I had tired to comfort Gaara about it, telling him that he can still find room to love someone else. Maybe he took that to heart and realized that he had been ignoring Lee while devoting his attention to me."

"Stranger things have happened, I suppose," Inoichi concluded with a jot on his notebook. "Okay, then – we can say that Gaara and Lee had only been together for roughly a week before the incident. In that case, it's far more plausible that Mr. Subakuno hadn't discovered their relationship than if they had been dating for a year. Did you know anything else about Gaara and Lee? Anything that they might've been doing that night?"

"To tell the truth, no. I was a bit preoccupied with some plans of my own that night… I was content just knowing Gaara had found someone new," Naruto said, blushing slightly as he remembered that day at Lake Konoha.

"I understand. I can't really expect you to know everything about them. What about Mr. Subakuno? Do you know anything about him? What his relationship with Gaara was like?"

"Not really. I never met him myself. All I know about him is what I learned from Gaara – that he never really liked Gaara and blamed him for his wife's death. To be honest, he sounds like a prick."

"While I agree with you, I'm not sure how convincing that will be in court," Inoichi said with a smirk. "Just repeating what Gaara's said won't get us anywhere, but what about Gaara himself? You said that Mr. Subakuno blamed him for his wife's death – could you see any of that in Gaara's personality?"

"Oh, yes. It's obvious that being treated like a monster all those years had a traumatic effect on him," Naruto responded with a shudder.

"Monster… interesting choice of words. Gaara used that several times in his testimony as well. He said he felt like he had robbed his family of the love it once had."

"And I know for a fact that he did."

"May I ask how?"

"Because I can see it in his eyes. It's the same look that I once had all those years ago. You may remember the Kyuubi murders years ago over in Mizu."

"Of course, it was all over the papers. But I don't see how that's relevant…"

"Kyuubi was my father," Naruto interrupted, causing Inoichi to go immediately silent. Neither of them said a word for a moment, until the teen finally continued with a deep breath. "I was an orphan after those murders, along with several other kids whose parents were among his victims. They always blamed me, saying I was some sort of monster, having his blood in my veins. I know exactly how Gaara felt – that's not something you can just fake. The anguish, the self-loathing, the guilt… that was all real. Mr. Subakuno did that to Gaara, made him wish he had never been born."

"I… I'm sorry. I didn't realize," Inoichi replied, forcing a cough as he scribbled down a flurry of notes. "Well, you've certainly convinced me. You're the only one who could vouch for something like that – Ibiki will have trouble with that one. Now, what about the bridge? Why did you decide to go there that night?"

"It was a coincidence, really. I was afraid Gaara might do something drastic, and I knew he would have to go over the bridge if he was going to leave town. I didn't expect to find him there, though."

"So you thought there was a chance Gaara might commit suicide?"

Naruto nodded grimly. "I didn't know exactly what he was planning to do, but the thought crossed my mind. My friends guessed that he'd go on a rampage, but I knew that wasn't the case. Gaara seemed more likely to take it out on himself, and that's what scared me. When I saw him on top of the bridge there… well, I was afraid my fears had come true."

"I see, so you decided to climb up there to try and keep him from jumping?"

"More or less. I was hoping I could talk some sense into him, even though I knew he was unstable and probably dangerous. Was it crazy? Probably, but it worked."

The blond lawyer bobbed his head in agreement. "Indeed it did. Do you know what you said that turned him around? What went on up there? This is key – if Ibiki can find anything that might suggest Gaara was violent at that time, then he'll jump at it."

"I guess I mainly told him that he wasn't a monster – that it had all been a terrible accident, and that we didn't hate him for it," Naruto replied after some careful consideration. "He was clearly shocked by what had happened, though. He hated himself, and he didn't want to be told that it was all okay. He even knocked me over at one point because he was afraid of what he might do if I stopped him."

Inoichi looked up concernedly. "He knocked you down? On the bridge?"

"Yeah… is that a problem?"

"It could be. Ibiki could suggest that he was trying to kill you by pushing you off the tower. Given what you've told me, though, I think that'll be a tough sell. Go on."

"There's not much left to say. When Temari and Kankuro showed up, he calmed down considerably," the teen said with a shrug.

"That's all?"

"Yes," Naruto began, only to pause mid-sentence. There _was_ something else – something exceedingly important. He hadn't thought to say it before, only because it was so painfully obvious to him, but that was only because of his relationship with Kyuubi. To anyone who hadn't been through such an experience, though, what Gaara said would've been completely illogical. "He said that, even though he hated his dad for what he did to him and their family, he still loved him. I'm sure that's what hurt him the most, knowing he'd been forced to take the life of someone he truly cared about."

The lawyer's eyes narrowed as he tried to process this last bit of information. "But why? From what I've heard, Mr. Subakuno was horrible to Gaara from the day he was born."

_Just as I thought…_

"Because he was still Gaara's dad," Naruto replied simply. There was no other way to put it, really – sometimes the most obvious things needed to be pointed out. "No matter how awful Mr. Subakuno was, he was still a very important part of Gaara's life, whether either of them liked it or not."

Closing his notebook, Inoichi smiled and rose from his seat. "Well, I think that seals it. Ibiki's going to have a hard time breaking through this defense. You've been a great help, Naruto."

"Glad to do it. Just make sure Gaara's found innocent. He's been through enough as it is."

"I couldn't agree more. Well, then, I'll see you on Saturday," Inoichi said with a quick nod of his head. "Good day to you."

Naruto watched in bewilderment as the lawyer calmly walked out of the room, leaving him all alone. It was only as the door slammed shut that the blond was struck with a realization: the reason why he had come to the hospital to begin with.

"Shit! I forgot about Sasuke!"

xxxxx

Sasuke stood at the entrance to the hospital, dressed in his street clothes – a navy blue tee and khaki shorts. In one hand he held his old, tattered clothes from the crash, with Naruto's bright orange boxerbriefs lying on top. In the other arm he cradled a black urn with painted, green snakes wrapped around the sides. He still had a few stitches on his head, but they were sufficiently covered by his bangs. No one would've guessed he had been fighting for his life a few days before.

Staring out through the double glass doors, the Uchiha found Kakashi waiting beside his red car, a smile visible behind his mask. Standing around him were a few patients clad in their powder blue hospital gowns, along with some doctors trying to enjoy the fresh air on that cool, autumn day. Naruto was nowhere to be found. Despite his disappointment, he couldn't exactly say he was surprised. Naruto had probably been forced to stay after school for some reason or another – it certainly wouldn't be the first time the blond had detention. They could talk later.

With a sigh, Sasuke glanced down at the urn in his arms. Kabuto had dropped it off earlier that morning, saying that O would've wanted the teen to have it. As for Kabuto, it was too painful for him to stay in Konoha after what had happened – too many memories. Instead, he was heading for Suna, so he could try to start anew. That left Sasuke to fulfill O's last request: to scatter his ashes over the pond in the park.

Shaking his head, Sasuke stepped through the glass doors and walked over to the car, his feet slapping against the hard cement as he entered the sunlight. There, Kakashi greeted him with a wave. "Did you remember everything?"

"Yeah, I think so. I didn't have a lot with me to begin with," the teen replied. He was noticeably distant today, as both he and Kakashi noticed. Neither of them was surprised, though; after all, Sasuke had always viewed Kakashi as a sort of father figure, but also as a friend. Now that he was officially his dad, though, Sasuke wasn't sure just how he was supposed to act. Did he treat his friend with a greater degree of respect? Or should they just pretend nothing had changed?

_But things _have_ changed. He made that commitment… the least I can do is show him my appreciation, right? I mean, he only became my father to look out for my best interests, right?_

"All right then, son… Sasuke," Kakashi said sheepishly opening the passenger door. "Hop on in. We have a lot to go over at home."

Home. That was another strange change – for all of Sasuke's life, home had been the Uchiha Mansion. Home had meant Itachi and the staff. Now, it meant an apartment with Kakashi. It wasn't necessarily a bad thing – Sasuke knew he'd get along better with Kakashi than he ever did with Itachi – but it was different. This whole new situation would be an adjustment, but Sasuke could do it. He could adapt. Who knows, he might even end up liking it.

With a nod, Sasuke climbed inside the car and buckled up, while Kakashi did likewise. They sat there for a moment both wanting to say something, but neither able to find the words. What could they really say to make everything all right? After all, Sasuke had just found out that his brother was the cause of all the suffering early in his life. To just suddenly open up to a new family would be asking a bit much, but at the same time Kakashi _was_ the Uchiha's father now – they needed to form some sort of bond.

"Sasuke… I know this must be awkward for you. It's been a rough week, and I don't expect you to like how things are going right now. I want you to know that I'm here for you, though, just like I've always been. If you need to talk about anything at all, just say the word."

The Uchiha glanced over at the silver-haired man to find that he was staring at a small, bee-shaped crack in the windshield. He was afraid of what Sasuke might be thinking – he was just as uncertain about their new relationship as the teen was.

"Thanks… I'll remember that," he replied with a smile. He hesitated a moment before continuing, trying to pick just the right words. "I want you to know, I don't think there's anyone else I'd rather have. You're not my dad, but… I guess you're the next best thing."

Without a word, Kakashi started the car and began to move out of the parking lot. Sasuke could see the joyful tear rolling down the man's face, though, and felt a wave of relief. Before he could dwell on the subject much longer, however, he heard something coming from behind them – a loud, familiar call.

"WAIT! SASUKE!"

Looking up at the rearview mirror, Sasuke saw a distinct, orange figure with yellow hair running after them. Clearly, Kakashi had seen him as well, as he chuckled to himself. "Guess we'd better stop, huh?"

"He'll catch up to us eventually if we don't."

"You think so?"

"He followed me all the way to Suna, didn't he?" Sasuke replied wryly, watching as Naruto continued to wave his arms wildly behind them.

"Touché," Kakashi said as he stepped on the brake, bringing the car to a halt. Moments later, a winded Naruto ran up alongside Sasuke's window, knocking gently on the glass.

After rolling down his window, Sasuke gave his boyfriend a look of feigned innocence. "Oh, I'm sorry, Naruto. Were you trying to get our attention?"

"Sorry… I'm late…" Naruto gasped as he leaned against the car. "I had to talk with someone."

"Hop in," Kakashi said, unlocking the doors with the press of a button.

Relieved, Naruto climbed inside and buckled up as Kakashi began to move forward and out of the hospital parking lot. Once they were on the road, the teacher glanced at Naruto in mirror and said, "So, I take it you and Sasuke need to talk for a bit?"

"What? Oh, no… I just wanted to see him when he got out of the hospital. I'm sure you have a lot you need to talk to him about yourself, after all."

"Nonsense, I insist. Besides, Sasuke had some business to take care of at the park. I'll just drop the two of you off there, and you can talk to your heart's content," Kakashi replied as he took a sharp turn towards the park.

Sasuke said nothing throughout this exchange, as he sat somewhere in the middle. Yes, he definitely wanted to spend some time with his boyfriend – his stay in the hospital had been far too long – but he also needed to take care of business with Kakashi. He could tell something was weighing on the teacher's mind, and it wasn't just the whole adoption issue. He was hiding something from Sasuke.

_What, though? Maybe he knows something about Itachi? No, that's not likely – he'd tell me if he'd heard anything. If anything, it has to do with Akatsuki. I'm the head of the Uchiha branch now, and as my father he plays a key role in any major decisions. That must be why he seems so preoccupied…_

For a brief moment, Sasuke considered confronting Kakashi about it right then and there, but it was only a fleeting thought. They could talk about that later – right now, he and Naruto had to play a game of catch-up. That, and he still had to say goodbye to a dear friend, residing in the urn between Sasuke's legs. Upon seeing the orange fabric lying beside the urn, the Uchiha glanced over his shoulder at his boyfriend with a playful smile.

"Oh, by the way, you can have these back," Sasuke said, tossing the boxerbriefs at the blond's face.

"About damn time," Naruto responded as he peeled the underwear off his head. He folded it up before tucking it into his pants pocket. "If you want to borrow my undies next time, just ask."

"I'll keep that in mind."

A few minutes passed before they arrived at the park. Throughout the drive, Sasuke could only stare disinterestedly out the window at the people passing alongside them. People shopping. People going out for lunch. People going to work. People doing all of the things O would never be able to do again, and yet not one of them appreciated the gift they had. It made Sasuke a bit sick to think about it, knowing that he had been one of those people. He had only felt sorry for himself, for what had happened to him, when in reality he had so much to live for, like his friends, his business, and, of course, Naruto.

_Not any more. I'm through with it…_

Kakashi pulled into the small parking lot and waved to the young lovers as they stepped out with the urn. "I'll just leave you two here, then. Sasuke, you know the way back to the apartment, right?"

Sasuke gave a dismissive flick of his hand as he and Naruto started down the path. "I'll be fine. Have fun with Iruka."

Kakashi looked positively shocked. "But… how did you know?"

"I didn't," the Uchiha replied with a grin. "Like I said, though – have fun."

_Well, some things never change, I guess. I can still read him like a book…_

With that, Sasuke and Naruto headed into the park, which looked like it was afire with all the red, orange, and yellow leaves hanging from the trees. Following the winding cobblestone path through the heart of the park, they looked on as children played throughout, their laughter blending in with the honks of startled geese and chittering of squirrels. Sasuke felt a surge of warmth in his heart as he watched one child giggle with delight as his father pushed him higher and higher in a swing.

"This is where we used to go when we were kids, you know. Me and Itachi, that is," Sasuke said, before settling down on the grass, the fallen leaves crunching under his weight. "He'd take me himself sometimes, but the best was always when Dad managed to get time off of work to take us."

Naruto looked somewhat uncomfortable as he joined the Uchiha beside the path. "I don't remember going to the park that often with my parents. I'm sure they did at some point, but I must've been too young."

_Damn… that was stupid of me. Way to bring up a touchy subject…_

"I'm sorry, it's just… well, this whole adoption thing. It's got me thinking, it's been over five years since they died. That's almost a third of my life, you know? But I never really thought about it before… I just tried to avoid it, I guess. I didn't want to think about it… it was just too hard."

The boy on the swing suddenly let go of the ropes at the apex, sending him flying into the air. He landed a short distance away, but tumbled onto the woodchips. By the time his father had caught up to him, the boy was already in tears, his knee dirty and bleeding.

"They're there to teach us, so we don't make those kinds of mistakes," Sasuke continued, watching with a nostalgic smile as the father dusted his son's knee. "I wonder if I learned enough from them when they were around. There were so many times I just ignored them… it makes me wish I could take it all back sometimes. Try it again."

Naruto nodded. "I… I don't know what to say. Like I said, my parents died when I was so young, I didn't have much of a chance to make those kinds of mistakes, or to learn their lessons. Ever since Iruka adopted me, though, I know I've learned a lot. Like, apparently it's not a good idea to paint the carpet green to make it look like grass."

"Why am I not surprised to hear you say that?" the Uchiha asked with a laugh.

"I was just a kid, and one who hadn't had a parent for years. As much as I've learned from Iruka, though, I know there are things he's tried to teach me that I've ignored. That's just part of life, Sasuke. We're not perfect – we make mistakes. All we can do is look forward and try not to repeat them."

"You're probably right," Sasuke concluded, watching as the child climbed up on his father's shoulders. They then started off towards the parking lot, the boy having completely forgotten his injury as he rode piggyback. "I just hope this all works out. My parents died, Itachi turned out to be a traitor… I just want things to work out with Kakashi."

Naruto raised an eyebrow skeptically. "You're joking, right? You've known Kakashi for years! He's helped you through this ordeal, and he's taught you all along the way. How could you possibly doubt that he'll be a great dad?"

"I was wrong about Itachi." Immediately, the blond shut up. Sasuke stared down at the urn and sighed. "Look, I want to believe that this'll work out – I don't want to be filled with doubt anymore. I keep promising myself that I'll move beyond this somehow, but I guess old habits really _do_ die hard…"

After a moment of silence, Sasuke stood up with the urn and shook his head. "All right, enough of this. It's time to say farewell to O."

Though Sasuke tried to keep a strong face in light of what he was about to do, his legs quivered slightly beneath him. Naturally, this did not go unnoticed by Naruto, who rose and placed a hand to his boyfriend's shoulder. "All right, then. Let's go."

Together, the young couple continued along the cobblestone path, watching as the colorful leaves danced along with the breeze. It was only a short walk through the copse of pine trees before they arrived at the stone bridge near the edge of the pond, with the trickling stream traveling beneath. After arriving at the center of the bridge, Sasuke turned and gazed out at the water, with the sun's reflection shimmering back at him. A short distance out was a family of ducks swimming along serenely, kicking lily pads out of the way as the passed.

Gazing down at the urn he'd set on the railing. "He always loved this park, you know. He came here every day, rain or shine. The trees, the sounds of laughing children, the running water, the fresh air… they were inspirational to him."

"He must've written some beautiful music, then," Naruto offered with a gentle smile.

"To be honest, I don't know. In all the years I knew him, I never once went to one of his shows," Sasuke said with a weak laugh. "I'd hear him playing a tune by the tree every so often, but that was about it. I guess I'll always regret that, too."

"I'm sure he understands, Sasuke. Besides, maybe you'll still hear his music someday. Stranger things have happened, right?"

A cloud drifted by overhead, momentarily blocking the sun. Sasuke nodded. "I suppose so."

Waiting a moment, Naruto placed his hand on Sasuke's, drawing the Uchiha's attention. They locked eyes before the blond spoke up. "Are you ready?"

Glancing back at the urn, Sasuke bit his lip. "I suppose so."

Taking off the lid, Sasuke stared down at the ashes inside. It was all that remained of O – after all he had done in his life, in the end he was only a pile of dust. Taking a deep breath, Sasuke scooped up a handful of the ash and tossed it over the railing, watching as it settled onto the pond below. "Rest in peace, O. May you become a living part of this park you loved so much."

After tossing another handful of the ashes, Sasuke paused and watched the dust drift along the surface of the water. Some of the particles fell beneath, while others continued for some time, looking almost like fuzz floating along. Despite his best efforts, he felt a tear trickle down his cheek.

"Are you okay?" Naruto asked, his voice no higher than a whisper. "I know that couldn't have been easy for you."

"I'm fine," Sasuke said, brushing off the tear with his thumb. "I know he wouldn't want me to feel sad about this. It was his choice to save me… I shouldn't blame myself."

_I shouldn't… but I do. Maybe if I hadn't run away to begin with, he wouldn't have had to save me. He could've patched himself up, or maybe he wouldn't have even been in that seat. He might've been the one with just a scratch on his head…_

"What's done is done, Sasuke. O didn't save you so you'd sit around moping, right?"

"I know, I know… still, it's hard," Sasuke replied, his voice cracking. There was something burning in the back of his mind, a question that he wished he could ask, but he knew he'd never be able to. Still, he prayed he could find an answer. "Naruto… do you think he'd be proud of me?"

Naruto looked out at the water as the sun broke free from the cloud, illuminating the pond once more. "I think he's always been proud of you, Sasuke. I think he'd be happy to know you're not letting your fears keep you from living your life. He'd be happy as long as you're happy."

Sasuke's lips curled into a sarcastic smirk as he glanced over at the blond. "Only you could say that with a straight face, you know."

"It might be corny, but it's true. That's why he saved you, Sasuke – he wanted you to find happiness."

The Uchiha nodded as he watched one of the ducks fly across the water, sending waves along in every direction. He could no longer see the ashes. "I know."

For a moment, they sat in silence, absorbing the moment. Everything seemed to be at peace, despite all the troubling times that led them there. Sex, Itachi, Sasuke's escape, the crash – they all seemed to be distant memories. For Naruto, though, there was one memory that he could not get off his mind, one of a far more pleasant nature.

"Remember when we made out under here that day?" he asked with a chuckle.

"How could I forget? It was one of the riskier things we've done. Well, that and the showers at school, the hospital, the sauna, Lake Konoha…"

"You've made your point," Naruto interrupted before Sasuke could rattle off any other incidents. "So… do you want to give a repeat performance?"

Sasuke looked astonished. "Now? But Kakashi will be waiting for me back at the apartment…"

"So? You can talk all you want later. He can learn to share," Naruto replied with a grin. "So, what do you say?"

Returning the smile, Sasuke leaned closer. "Okay, you lead the way."

"With pleasure."

Seizing Sasuke's wrist, Naruto led the Uchiha down from the bridge to the stream below. Immediately after descending the grassy hillside to the water, though, the blond turned and pushed Sasuke up against the slope. Before Sasuke could question his boyfriend's actions, Naruto lips pressed against him, causing him to only close his eyes as he savored the other boy's flavors.

Yes, this was what he wanted - to be able to spend these intimate moments with Naruto without worrying about what they meant. It didn't matter that their bond was growing stronger, despite the possibility that it could be severed at any time. That was unimportant. All Sasuke wanted to do was enjoy Naruto now, while they had the time. Worrying and fear could wait.

As Sasuke kissed his boyfriend back, sucking gently on Naruto's lower lip, he slid one hand up the back of Naruto's shirt while stroking his sunshine hair with the other. He could feel the grass itching the back of his neck, and the sand giving out beneath his feet, but he ignored these sensations, focusing instead on the heat of Naruto's breath, and feel of his hand resting on the Uchiha's side.

Pulling his lips back slightly from the blond, Sasuke smirked before kicking off the hillside. Naruto's eyes widened as he fell back into the water, with his boyfriend tumbling down with him, still locked in an embrace. With a splash, Naruto landed in the shallow stream, his back completely soaked.

"There, that's better," Sasuke said, straddling the vulpine boy's torso.

Now on top, Sasuke allowed his hands to explore Naruto more thoroughly. One hand found itself slipping around Naruto's back, where it slid down the back of his shorts. Meanwhile, the other tugged gently on the blond's shirt, slowly pulling it up to expose his glistening, bare chest.

"Here, let me."

"No, I've got it."

"You're sure? Ow! My ear!"

"Oh, get over it," Sasuke concluded, having pulled the shirt over Naruto's head, albeit with some difficulty, and tossed it onto the shore. As a way of making up for the minor pain, Sasuke decided to playfully lick Naruto's earlobe, eliciting a slight moan.

Throughout this, Naruto's hands were quite busy as well, as one gingerly tugged Sasuke's shirt upward and the other focused on unbuttoning the teen's shorts. Once they were both shirtless, Naruto suddenly grabbed Sasuke in a sort of bear hug, and rolled over, placing him on top once more as the water trickled by around them. Sasuke had to flick a lock of wet hair out of his face to better see his boyfriend, who was gazing back at him with a naughty grin.

"Well, well… what have we here?" he asked, walking his fingers along Sasuke's chest. They stopped around the Uchiha's nipples, where Naruto proceeded to rub them carefully. "Let's have some fun, shall we?"

As he continued to play with Sasuke's nipples, Naruto moved down to his neck with his mouth, kissing that tender area in a way that sent a wave of pleasure through the Uchiha. Not wanting to be outdone, Sasuke decided to have some fun of his own, running one hand along Naruto's abs, while groping his butt with the other.

"You really have a thing for my ass, don't you?" Naruto asked, before returning to Sasuke's neck.

"And you really like my nipples."

"Fair enough."

As they continued in this manner, Naruto used a free hand to continue undoing Sasuke's shorts. It was only a few seconds before he was slipping them off Sasuke's feet and tossing them onto the shore. One glance down at Sasuke's crotch had the blond grinning broadly, and it was easy to see why – the water had caused Sasuke's boxers to cling in all the right places, revealing the clear outline of an erection.

"Don't you dare," Sasuke muttered, blushing under his boyfriend's gaze. "You know as well as I do that you're probably just as hard as I am."

"You're right," Naruto replied almost proudly as he plopped down beside Sasuke's feet. "It's fun to tease you, though. You take it so seriously."

Before Sasuke could say another word, he was suddenly distracted as Naruto slipped the Uchiha's big toe into his mouth. It was a very unusual feeling, but Sasuke found it oddly pleasurable. One by one, Naruto went down the line, suckling the Uchiha's toes, tickling them with his tongue, savoring them as he massaged the teen's feet with both hands. As soon as he had finished with the last pinky toe, however, Naruto found himself tackled to the ground by an unusually feisty Sasuke, who had a matching devilish grin.

"Your turn," he said, unbuttoning the blond's shorts.

Sasuke had never seen a pair of shorts fly off so quickly. It helped that Naruto was willing, but the Uchiha's enthusiasm meant they were off and slapping against the stone wall of the bridge in an instant. As Sasuke had expected, Naruto was just as aroused as he was, but what he had not anticipated was the blond's underwear choice. Yes, they were boxers – not that surprising – but they were also white. And from what Sasuke knew about white fabric, white + water = transparent.

And such was Naruto's underwear on that day. He might as well have been wearing nothing, sitting there in the practically clear boxers with everything on display. It was daring. It was different. And, most importantly, it was _hot_.

"Here, roll over," Sasuke suggested, standing up slightly so his boyfriend could flip beneath him.

"Umm… okay. You'd better not be planning to drown me here…"

"If I wanted to do that, I would've done it a long time ago. Now turn over."

Still looking uncertain, Naruto rolled onto his stomach, spluttering somewhat as some stray water splashed into his mouth. He eventually rested his head on his hands, keeping his face far enough out of the water so he could lie comfortably. Meanwhile, Sasuke plopped down on the blond's thighs, admiring the view. As he'd thought, the wet fabric clung to Naruto's plump rump, and was completely see-through. Leaning forward, Sasuke rested on the blond's back and proceed to rub his boyfriend's shoulders, resting his head just beneath his neck.

"What's with you today?" Naruto asked before a moan escaped from his lips.

"Is that the good spot?" Sasuke asked with a chuckle.

"No, seriously, though. You seem… different."

"What do you mean?"

Naruto paused, closing his eyes as he enjoyed the massage. "I don't know, you're… _frisky_."

"I learned from the best," Sasuke replied, slapping the side of Naruto's butt with one hand. Laughing, he leaned closer and whispered. "Consider this my way of saying thank you."

"For what?"

"For coming after me, of course. For… forgiving me."

"You know I couldn't stay mad at you," Naruto replied, turning onto his back. "Even when I punched you in the hospital there, it was only half-hearted."

Sasuke rubbed his cheek. "_That_ was half-hearted? I feel bad for Gaara, now – can't imagine what you put him through in that fight."

Naruto laughed as he stared up at his boyfriend. "Yeah… well, he deserved it for messing with you. I mean it, though – are you sure everything's okay? Maybe this was a bad idea, after what happened last time…"

"Don't worry, Shikamaru's not here to interrupt us."

"Sasuke! I'm serious…"

Immediately, Sasuke planted a kiss on the blond's lips, effectively silencing him. He pulled back with a genuine smile a placed a finger to Naruto's chin. "Trust me, I'm fine. I'm just finally doing all the things I wanted to do, but never could. No more living in fear – O wouldn't have wanted that."

Naruto grinned pulling Sasuke closer into an embrace. "Is that so? Then it sounds like I need to show you my appreciation, too."

Sliding one hand behind the Uchiha's head, Naruto pulled Sasuke into a kiss, their bodies pressed against each other as the water wrapped around them. It was a cool sensation, lying nearly naked in the autumn air, but they remained warm locked in their embrace.

Feeling a sudden urge, Sasuke pulled back out of the kiss, ever so slightly, and whispered, "I really do love you, you know."

Naruto smiled, his breath warming his boyfriend's cheeks. "I love you too."

They remained in their embrace for some time, with Sasuke nuzzling against the blond's neck as he rested on his bare chest. Yes, this was what O wanted – for Sasuke to seize this strange creature called love and never let it go.

_Well, I've got the first part down, at least, and I'll be damned if I screw it up now. I will never let you go, Naruto. Never. _

* * *

Well, there you have it! New developments with Gaara's impending trial, O's funeral, more fun under the bridge, and some tension between Kakashi and Sasuke. What will come of these events? Will Gaara's defense be a success? What about Sasuke and Kakashi's new relationship? Will things go as smoothly as they both hope? Stay tuned to find out. Until next time, dear readers, thank you for reading, and remember: review!


	45. If Your Hopes Should Pass Away

Okay, this chapter is late. I apologize. It took me quite a while to get this one right. I had to rewrite it, tweak it, etc. - needless to say it was an ordeal. I'm happy with the result, though, and I hope you will be as well. Thanks for your patience, and, as usual, thank you for reading. Now, on with the chapter!

* * *

45. If Your Hopes Should Pass Away

Saturday morning came quickly for Sasuke. After his little make out session with Naruto under the bridge, he had walked back to Kakashi's apartment, soaking wet, only to have his endorphin-fueled high immediately destroyed. Kakashi had wasted no time in dropping the bomb regarding Sasuke's financial future: Akatsuki was finished, and Sasuke would have to sell the Uchiha mansion, the property, and much of his belongings to pay off the mounting debt.

He'd let loose quite a string of curses at that news. Despite his rantings, though, nothing changed. Kakashi maintained a firm, stoic expression, and Sasuke's sudden debt refused to go away. Really, Kakashi's proposal was the only way Sasuke could get out of his current predicament, whether he liked it or not, so the Uchiha grudgingly accepted.

And, just like that, a day and a half passed. Now, Sasuke stood before the mirror in Kakashi's apartment, adjusting the tie on his suit with a scowl. He hated suits – always had. They were a mark of the business world that he never truly cared for – Itachi's world.

_It's only for today, Sasuke. Just wear the damn suit, sign the papers, and get this thing over with…_

"Sasuke! Are you ready?" Kakashi called from outside the bathroom, rapping lightly on the door.

"Just a minute…" Sasuke muttered as he attempted the Windsor knot a third time. Above him, the bathroom light flickered briefly.

Finally satisfied, the Uchiha wiped his black dress shoes on the bathmat and threw open the door to find Kakashi waiting, looking quite sharp in his own gray suit. Sasuke again thought it unusual to see his new father without his trademark mask as he stepped out into the hallway. Kakashi quickly adjusted his pink tie and started for the door.

"All right, then. Let's get going."

"Right."

Sitting in Kakashi's cherry red sportscar, Sasuke leaned his head against the window and sighed. He couldn't believe it had come to this – losing everything his parents had ever worked for, all because Itachi was a lunatic. It was hardly fair, but then again, Sasuke still had something. He wasn't being tossed out on the streets – he'd still have enough money for his schooling, and to find a nice, modest house somewhere in the suburbs. And, of course, he had his family. Glancing over at Kakashi, Sasuke felt a wave of shame as he recalled their conversation a few days before.

_"Sasuke, we need to talk."_

_"About what?"_

_"It's about the Akatsuki Corporation. With all the recent arrests and revelations, they've been reduced to shambles. Their stock is nearly worthless."_

_"And…?"_

_"Your fortune comes almost entirely from their stock, Sasuke."_

_"Wait… so you mean I'm… broke?"_

_"Not quite, but if we don't act soon, you will be. _We_ will be."_

_"What the hell? That's fucking bullshit! You're telling me because Itachi had to be a fucking psycho and kill my parents that I have to lose everything? What kind of justice is that? It's fucking travesty! I've suffered enough, goddammit!"  
_

_"Sasuke, just calm down… it's not so bad…"_

_"And just what the hell would you know about it? Or are you telling me that the only reason you adopted me was so that you could get my money? Is that it? Fucking hypocrite…"_

Sasuke shuddered. That had been low – low, uncalled for, and untrue. He'd done the natural thing when angry, though, and had gone for the easiest targets. Pointing out someone's insecurities, taking advantage of their fears, making fun of their foibles – in Sasuke's case, saying the most hurtful thing he could think of.

And yet, despite that, Kakashi had remained firm. The Uchiha felt his lip quiver just thinking about it.

_"Is that really how you feel?"_

_"Yes! You're not my father, Kakashi – you never will be! I never asked for this to happen!"_

Why had he said that? Just an hour before he had been praising the changes in his life – the new people to support him, the new semblance of family – and then he did a complete 180° and rejected it all.

_"I'm sorry you feel that way, Sasuke. I think it goes without saying that you're going to bed without supper tonight."_

_"What? Why… you know what? Fuck you!"_

_"I love you too, Sasuke."_

He hadn't said it coyly. It was genuine, and Sasuke had heard the pain in his voice as he stormed off to bed. He had regretted it instantly, but he hadn't said a word about it. As they pulled into the parking lot at the Akatsuki Corporation headquarters, though, Sasuke finally spoke, his voice cracking slightly.

"Kakashi? I mean… Dad?"

"It's okay, Sasuke. I forgive you," Kakashi replied immediately with his signature smile. Sasuke noted how differently it looked without the mask, and wondered why the teacher would ever try to cover up something so wonderful.

"Y-you do?" the Uchiha replied in astonishment.

"Sure I do. I knew you didn't really mean it – you were just upset. At least… I hope you didn't mean it."

And there it was – that seed of doubt that had been lingering in Kakashi's mind for who knows how long. Did Sasuke truly hate Kakashi like he had so much of the world, or was their connection genuine? It was time to put those fears to rest.

"I didn't. You just caught me off guard – I didn't want to believe that I'd actually lost everything. Now that I've thought about it, though, I realize that it didn't really mean that much to me. Money's nice, but I'd give it all up to have Mom and Dad again," Sasuke replied, his eyes growing misty. "I guess you and Iruka will make good substitutes, though."

Before Sasuke could contemplate what had happened, he suddenly found himself wrapped in a tight embrace. "You have no idea how happy I am to hear that…"

"Sure I do – assuming it's anything like how I feel, that is…"

_Did I really just say that? I still think these guys are making me soft…_

Laughing, Kakashi pulled himself away from his son, leaving a slight wet patch on the teen's shoulder. Wiping his eyes, Kakashi grinned and adjusted his tie. "You know, Iruka said you'd feel that way. It's amazing how observant he is sometimes – he figured you out that quickly."

"Yet he couldn't figure out that me and Naruto were together when he found me naked in his bed," Sasuke responded, rolling his eyes.

"Well, like I said, he's observant _sometimes_. Other times he's about as clueless as a box of rocks," Kakashi said, pushing open the car door. "Now then, are you ready?"

"Ready as I'll ever be."

"Good enough for me."

Together, Sasuke and Kakashi stepped out of the car and headed towards the Akatsuki headquarters. As they crossed the massive parking lot and the sea of accompanying vehicles, Sasuke stared up at the looming building, shielding his eyes from the sun. It was just as he remembered it: 30 stories tall, with blue reflective windows covering the surface and a decagonal summit overlooking the entire city. On the sides were other, smaller buildings – warehouses, factories, laboratories – where the different divisions went to work on new weapons.

Sasuke had only visited those buildings a few times with Itachi, but he remembered well what he saw. Sasori's robotics division, Deidara's plastique explosives, Kisame's aquatic weapons, Hidan's chemical warfare sector – all of them were places that reeked of death. Sasuke felt sick just thinking about it.

Entering through the revolving doors to the main lobby, Sasuke and Kakashi were greeted by a bald man with sunglasses, who escorted them to the elevator. Without a word, he swiped a keycard and pressed floor 30 before returning to his post. Clearly, access to the top floors was limited, at least for the deal that was about to take place.

As the elevator crawled up towards the top of the building, Sasuke found his legs quivering in the metallic reflection on the doors. Despite his best efforts, they wouldn't stop.

"It'll be all right, Sasuke. I'm here for you – don't forget that."

The Uchiha swallowed hard and nodded, Kakashi's voice providing enough of a calming influence for the teen to regain his composure. He could do this. A few moments later, the elevator stopped, its doors sliding open to reveal an elaborate hallway with scarlet carpeting, glowing chandeliers, and portraits of CEOs on the sides. Sasuke averted his eyes from the painting of Itachi as he passed by, focusing instead on the double doors at the end of the corridor.

_No more distractions. This is my business now… I can't let Itachi influence my decision…_

Stopping before the shiny, oak doors, Sasuke took a deep breath and pushed one of them open, revealing a 10-sided table surrounded by various well-dressed parties. There was one empty slot nearest the door, the back of the chair bearing the Uchiha family-crest. With a determined look, Sasuke approached the chair and sat down while Kakashi stood at his side.

"Ah, Mr. Uchiha. Glad you could make it," said an individual with longish, brown hair. Sasuke assumed he was the government representative.

"Thank you , Mr…" Sasuke began, glancing at the man's name badge, "Kamizuki."

"Call me Izumo," the man replied with a smile.

Sasuke couldn't help but notice how the man's hair covered one eye, and wondered how a man with such a casual appearance could possibly be involved in such heavy business. He then remembered Itachi's own longer hairstyle and decided that the business world had changed more than he thought.

Izumo cleared his throat. "Well, now that we're all gathered, let's begin the negotiations, shall we?"

Sasuke glanced at his neighbors. He was seated beside Kisame's successor, a teen with white hair and razor sharp teeth on the one side, while on the other was Sasori's next of kin, a woman who looked to be in her 90s. Around the table were other heirs and new CEOs, some of whom Sasuke could pair to their predecessors, while others he could not.

Once everyone was settled, Izumo continued. "Now, my supervisor has offered to purchase the Akatsuki Corporation in its entirety for $20 billion."

Sasuke's eyes widened – that was a huge number. The shark-boy to his left was clearly displeased with this sum, however, and glowered in his leather chair. "$20 billion? That's bullshit! Akatsuki's worth twice that."

Izumo frowned and raised a hand for silence. "Thank you, Suigetsu. We're well aware of what Akatsuki's financial situation is. Yes, it _was_ worth $50 billion, but that was before these recent… revelations. You have to understand that the government will have to spend more money after this acquisition is complete if we're to put Akatsuki to use. So, I'll repeat myself: the offer is $20 billion."

Suigetsu fumed before taking a sip from his bottled water. "Well, what does that mean for us?"

"You'll each receive a hefty share of the cut, of course – roughly one billion each. That will be enough to make up for your extreme losses and, essentially, brake even. The rest of the money will be distributed among your remaining stockholders, including your employees, who will be allowed to stay with the company should the so choose."

"Then what's the point of all this? You're just keeping everything the same!" the old woman complained before laughing in a confusing manner.

"That's not quite true, Chiyo. We plan to make several changes at the management level."

"What do you mean?" Chiyo responded, tilting her head to the side in confusion.

"He means us," Sasuke interrupted flatly. "We're the ones that the buyers have no confidence in, because _we _have no experience. We have to be replaced if the Akatsuki Corporation is to thrive again. The government takes it off our hands, gives us our money, and adds new executives so they can turn a profit. Is that about right, Izumo?"

The government official nodded. "Well put, Sasuke. Consider this a mutually beneficial deal. You all will receive the funds you deserve, while we maintain what has been one of the military's greatest weapons providers at a reasonable price."

"But $20 billion?" Suigetsu moaned. "I have a ritzy lifestyle to maintain!"

"I'm sorry, but that's the offer. You can either take it, or risk going down with the company. Now then, let's take a vote. All in favor of the deal, please raise your hands."

Everyone seated around the table raised their hands, except Suigetsu, who sulked in his chair. Izumo sighed. "And what _exactly_ are your objections, Suigetsu?"

"I want more money, dammit! I need to fill that Olympic-sized pool I just installed, you know."

"I'm sorry, but that's as high as we're going to go If you want to wait another month, we'll be happy to pay $10 billion for what remains of the company. Your call."

Suigetsu bit his lip, his brow furrowed in frustration, and was quite startled when Sasuke planted a hand on his shoulder. Turning his surprise, the shark-boy met Sasuke's unblinking stare and paled. "Take the deal. You've gotten enough from this dirty business as it is. Time to wash your hands of it with the rest of us."

For a moment, Suigetsu looked as if he was going to argue, but he finally relented with a sigh. "Fine, let's do it."

Izumo smiled as he pulled forth several identical forms and passed them to his right. "Excellent. All you have to do is fill out these forms and we'll handle the rest."

The executives passed the forms around until everyone had an official document before them. Sasuke scanned it briefly – it seemed fairly straightforward: name, age address, phone number, social security number, account number, various spots to sign and date. He hurriedly filled in the appropriate and reviewed it several times. To his surprise, he was sweating.

_This is it. Time to end this chapter of my life. No more living in the past. My parents, Itachi, our home, our business… it's time to move on. Time to start anew._

With a sigh, Sasuke slid the form across the table to Izumo, who accepted it with a nod. "Thank you, Sasuke. Pleasure doing business with you – you're free to go."

Nodding solemnly in turn, Sasuke rose and faced the double doors. With Kakashi by his side he stepped out of the executive's room and into the hallway, where the teacher glanced down at his son with a smile.

"I'm proud of you, Sasuke. I know that must've been hard for you."

"It was easier than I thought it would be," the Uchiha replied with a shrug. "I guess I knew it was time."

"Well, in any case, I'm glad you finished so quickly. Now we can make it to the trial."

Sasuke's heart skipped a beat. In all the hustle of that morning preparing for the meeting, he had forgotten that Gaara's trial was starting that day. He glanced at the clock on the wall – it was a quarter to twelve. They could still make it if they hurried.

"Let's go!"

XXXXX

"All rise before the Honorable Judge Mifune!"

Naruto stood at the bailiff's word and watched as an older man in black robes with a long, black moustache and beard approached the bench. To the blond's right sat Iruka; to his left, Lee. Sitting on the other side of the barricade were Gaara and Inoichi, with Ibiki sitting at another table a short distance away. The room was relatively full – apparently word had spread quickly in Konoha of the strange murder case, and there were many eager to see how it would all play out.

Everyone in Naruto's sight was wearing a suit of some sort. He was wearing a simple, black suit with an orange tie. Lee wore a similar suit, but with a green tie, while both Gaara's suit and tie were red. As for Iruka, he wore black from head to toe. It all reflected the seriousness of the situation – they were there to determine whether Gaara spent the rest of his life as a free man, or behind bars.

When Mifune sat down at the bench, he said in an authoritative manner, "You may be seated."

The courtroom complied with this order, and Naruto watched nervously as the judge shuffled some papers before him. He studied one document in particular, eyeing it carefully before speaking once more. "We are here today to decide the case of Konoha versus Subakuno."

Turning his attention to Gaara, Mifune took on an intimidating gaze, as if he was trying to stare directly into the redhead's soul. "Mr. Subakuno, you have been charged with the second degree murder of your father. How do you plead?"

Gaara stared straight back at the judge, unfazed by both his authority and tone. "Not guilty."

"Very well. The prosecution may make its opening statement."

With what Naruto could only describe as a sneer, Ibiki rose from his table and glanced at Gaara before turning his attention to the jury. Naruto truly found the man to be terrifying. For one, his face was covered with scars, and the blond was sure there was a story behind every single one based on the man's massive physique. Clearly Ibiki had been in the military at one point – either that, or he just liked to get in fights at bars. Naruto could see that both were possible. Somehow, though, the man still looked professional in his fitted suit with a navy blue tie.

"Ladies and gentlemen of the jury," Ibiki began, pacing casually before Gaara's twelve 'peers,' "as you know, the defendant is here today accused of murdering his father in a heated argument. It's not my job to tell you what you already know, though. It's up to me to reveal the truth of what happened that night. Now, as you already heard, Mr. Subakuno here insists that he did not murder his father. I intend today to prove to you that what happened that night is _precisely_ murder. I will prove that Mr. Subakuno and his father had a rocky relationship, and that they got into a fight due to this strained connection. Two men went into that fight, and one came out. Now, I can't possibly know for certain what happened in that room as much as any of you can, but I intend to show beyond any reasonable doubt that what happened in that room was no act of self-defense, but an act of violence perpetrated in the heat of the moment. I'm sure you will all make the right choice."

Glancing back at Mifune, Ibiki nodded once. "Your Honor."

Naruto's gripped his black dress pants and gritted his teeth. He had been warned that Ibiki would try to twist the truth, but he still found himself indignant at the man's statement. Did he even know Mr. Subakuno? Did he not realize how much he hated Gaara, and how Gaara wanted nothing more than to be accepted by his family in spite of that animosity?

"The defense may make its opening statement," Mifune announced, snapping Naruto out of his reverie.

Rising from his chair, Inoichi adjusted his tie and walked over to the jurors, staring directly at them as he spoke. "Ladies and gentlemen, my defendant has said that he is not guilty of murder because he _did not_ murder his father. Did the two of them have a fight? Yes. Did his father die in the fight? Yes. But did he _murder _him? Well, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, _that_ is a completely different matter. I intend to prove to you all today that my client is not a murderer, but was actually the victim in this ordeal – a teenager robbed of a father who he was forced to kill in an act of self-defense."

The pony-tailed lawyer stared up at Mifune and smiled. "That's all, Your Honor."

Naruto felt his grip loosen as he breathed a sigh of relief. At least Inoichi would be the voice of reason in this situation – he could prove Gaara's innocence. Of course, it would require the blond's help.

"Very well. The prosecution may call its first witness."

At Mifune's word, Ibiki rose from his chair and spoke in a similarly pronounced manner. "The prosecution calls Abiru Sr. to the stand."

Naruto raised an eyebrow in confusion – that was a name he was not familiar with. Gaara, however, looked noticeably paler as an older man with brown hair and dark rings under his eyes stepped forward. He approached the bailiff, who waited with a Bible in one hand, the other raised in the air. Abiru Sr. mimicked the motion, placing his hand on the book.

"Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you God?"

"I do."

With that, the man took his seat, and Ibiki neared the stand looking quite smug. "Now, Mr. Abiru, could you tell the court what exactly happened to your son?"

"He died several years ago… he was murdered," Abiru Sr. said in a cracking whisper before pointing at Gaara with a shaking finger. "He was killed by him! That Gaara Subakuno stole my son from me!"

A wave of whispers arose in the courtroom before Mifune banged his gavel for order. Ibiki looked thrilled with this reaction. "I see. Was this an act perpetrated in cold blood?"

"It was planned out, but it wasn't done in cold blood, no. That Subakuno brat provoked my son, taunted him over several days, until he had no choice but to retaliate. When he went to stand up for himself, though, Gaara didn't hold back… I never saw my son alive again. I'll never forgive him for that," Abiru Sr. continued before losing his composure in a series of sobs.

"I know it must be hard for you to remember that day. Just let me ask you this one more question: based on what you know of Gaara's encounter with your son, do you believe that what happened with his father was a mere act of self-defense."

Abiru Sr. shook his head and gritted his teeth. "No… if you ask me, there hasn't been a moment in that bastard's life that he didn't plan out from the beginning. He probably had been waiting for his father to attack him for days, just so he could finally get rid of him."

_That bastard! What the hell does he know about Gaara? He probably never even met him…_

Ibiki waved a hand and turned towards his seat. "No further questions, your honor."

Mifune scribbled a note and glanced at Inoichi. "The defense may cross-examine the witness."

Inoichi rose and approached the witness stand, where his eyes narrowed. "Tell me, Mr. Abiru – if my client in fact murdered your son, why is he here today? Shouldn't he already be in prison?"

"He was never brought to trial over the incident."

"I see, and why would that be?"

Abiru Sr. bit his lip, drawing a bit of blood. "Because his father surrounded himself with lawyers, and they determined that it was an act of self-defense. There were enough witnesses to see my son strike first."

"But you're saying that Gaara had planned for that first punch to be thrown – that he wanted Abiru to start the fight, so he'd have the excuse to fight to his heart's content, is that right?"

"Exactly."

"Fair enough – let's assume this is the case. Then, didn't you say that Gaara's father was the one who lawyered up? That he was the one who made all the sacrifices of moving away so that Gaara could try to live a somewhat normal life?"

"What's your point?"

"Just answer the question, Mr. Abiru."

"Then, yes… I believe so."

"Well, that tells me that my client and his father had a pretty strong relationship. Even though they may have had their disagreements, he was still willing to make a sacrifice to protect his son. Do you agree?" Inoichi asked with a triumphant grin.

"No! His father didn't do it for Gaara – he did it for himself! His reputation was in tatters in Suna. He had to flee to salvage what was left of his career. He resented Gaara for what happened!"

"Resented him enough to kill him?" Inoichi challenged, his smirk growing broader as Abiru Sr. fidgeted.

"Yes…"

Naruto struggled not to grin. Inoichi had cornered Abiru Sr. and made him look utterly foolish in the process. This was going better than he thought.

"No further questions, Your Honor."

"You may take your seat, Mr. Abiru. The prosecution may present its next witness," Mifune announced as Abiru Sr. returned to his seat.

"The prosecution calls Dr. Iyashi to the stand."

A plain-looking man in a black suit and tie approached the stand, swore his oath, and took a seat. Almost immediately, Ibiki rested a hand on the witness stand and indicated the crowd with an open palm. "Dr. Iyashi, could you please explain to the court your opinion on the victim's wounds in this case?"

"With pleasure," Iyashi replied, looking quite calm in his response. Clearly this was not the first time he had been called in as an expert witness. "The victim died in a manner just as the defendant described. A strong blow to the nose had knocked the bone back into his brain, causing him to die almost immediately. Other marks on the victim's body indicated a struggle, though the majority of these were on his knuckles, suggesting that they were not inflicted by another individual, but were rather the result of pummeling someone else. There was a small fracture in the victim's hand, but that may have been the result of the beating, or some pressure – it's hard to say. Furthermore, bruises around the man's throat reveal that the man had been strangled before the final blow was delivered."

"Thank you very much. Now, in your opinion, does the defendant's claim of self-defense match the wounds seen on the victim?"

"For the most part, yes. A desperate kick to the nose certainly would've been enough to bash the bone back into the brain, and, as I said, the pummeling would explain the scratches on the knuckles. As for the fracture in the hand, that's not so clear," Iyashi said, shaking his head in bewilderment. "What's most disturbing are the bruises on the neck. I can't see how those could possibly have been inflicted in the same sort of panicked struggle that explains the blow to the nose."

"So, it is your expert opinion that those marks were not caused by an act of self-defense?"

"It is my opinion that what self-defense isn't the entire story. Perhaps there was a struggle before the kick to the nose – who's to say? More surprising is that blow to the nose, though. To hit that nose in just the right spot to knock the bone into the brain is highly unlikely. Again, though, if the defendant had trained well in self-defense, it's possible that he would've instinctively attacked that fatal point."

"Thank you very much. Your Honor."

Again, Naruto felt a wave of rage rush over him. How could they possibly write off all of Gaara's bruises so easily? Didn't that prove that he was only trying to protect himself? He wanted nothing more than to shout out, tell them that they were wrong, but he knew it would only hurt Gaara's case. He'd get the chance to speak his mind in due time.

"Inoichi, you may cross-examine the witness at this time," Mifune said, nodding to the lawyer.

"Dr. Iyashi, you say that there were markings on the victim's knuckles suggesting that he had been punching something during the struggle. When Gaara was found at the bridge, he was treated at the hospital for numerous bruises and cuts. Based on your expertise, do you believe that these wounds could have been caused while the victim was being strangled?"

Iyashi shook his head with a chuckle. "Absolutely not. If the victim was being strangled hard enough for those bruises to be inflicted, he would be struggling to breathe. It's highly unlikely that he'd try to punch his opponent – he'd probably focus on getting the hands off his throat."

"So, would you say that the blows came before the strangling?"

"Either before or after. It's more likely that he'd attack before, though – being deprived of oxygen would have weakened the victim significantly."

"Then the strangling could be seen as an act of self-defense, correct?" Inoichi asked with a wry smile.

"I'm afraid that's not my area of expertise," Iyashi replied calmly. "That's up to the court to decide."

Sighing, Inoichi slapped his hand on the witness stand and turned around. "Of course. No further questions, Your Honor."

_"That's up to the court to decide…" What an ass…_

"Any further witnesses, Ibiki?"

"One final witness, Your Honor. I call Chief Jiraiya to the stand," Ibiki announced, drawing a wave of whispers from the crowd. To have the chief of police testifying at the trial really brought the gravity of the case into perspective.

Sitting a few rows behind Naruto, Jiraiya appeared to be writing a book when his name was called. After scribbling a few more words, he clamped the book shut and rose, heading to the witness stand where he took his oath before sitting back down. He wore a reddish suit, which Naruto thought made him look quite professional in spite of his long, white hair. Ibiki approached the stand before speaking.

"Chief Jiraiya… you were the first one to arrive at the scene of the crime, correct?"

"The scene of the incident, yes. I don't believe we've ascertained whether a crime was actually committed yet, Ibiki," Jiraiya replied coyly.

"How silly of me. Could you tell the court, then, exactly what you found upon arriving?"

"It would be my pleasure. The first thing I noticed when I entered the room was the puddle of blood in the middle of the floor, surrounding the victim's body. He was still bleeding out the nose at the time, and his eyes were dull. In addition to the blood on the carpet, though, there were stains on the bed – a DNA analysis told us that this was not the victim's blood, but rather the defendant's. Furthermore, there was a dent in the wall, which we believe was caused when the defendant's boyfriend was shoved back in the heat of the moment."

"So there was definitely a struggle?"

"Yes, I don't believe it's possible to argue that only one side fought in this ordeal. The defendant certainly didn't inflict the wounds on himself to create the blood on the bedspread – the splatter simply doesn't match."

"Is it possible that the boyfriend inflicted those blows?"

Jiraiya shook his head. "The boyfriend was still in the room when we arrived. There were no marks on his body to suggest that he was in any way involved in the fight, with the exception of a few drops of blood that were most likely left by the splatter."

"In your expert opinion, Chief Jiraiya, was the victim's death caused by an act of self-defense, or by murder?"

"It's hard to say," the officer said with a shrug. "We know that the defendant killed his father – he's not denying that. What's important is who started this conflict. The fact that only the defendant's blood is on the bedspread implies that he was assaulted first, and that the death of his father was the result of self-defense. Based on the defendant's history, though, that may or may not be the case."

"Thank you very much, Chief. No further questions."

Naruto felt his heart sink. That had been a very reasonable argument – what more could he expect from Jiraiya, though? He was the one who discovered the truth behind Itachi – he wasn't one to jump to conclusions. If he was not convinced one way or the other, then that meant the jury must've been in the same boat.

"The defense may now cross-examine the witness," Mifune said, nodding in Inoichi's direction.

Taking his place beside the witness stand, Inoichi examined Jiraiya for a moment before asking his first question. "Tell me, Chief Jiraiya – you mention the defendant's history playing a role in your judgment of this case. What about the victim's history?"

"Naturally, that has also played a significant factor in determining just what happened that night. The victim's animosity towards the defendant has been made clear repeatedly over the past few years. That, combined with the knowledge that the victim had lost his job the day of the incident, and that there was a high blood alcohol level suggests that he very well could've been the instigator in this event."

"Thank you. No further questions, Your Honor."

"Does the prosecution have any other witnesses?" Mifune asked, glancing at Ibiki. The scarred lawyer rose in turn and bowed his head.

"The prosecution rests at this time, Your Honor," Ibiki concluded with a sigh.

"Very well, then the defense may present its first witness."

"The defense calls Gaara Subakuno to the stand."

Naruto was by no means surprised by this decision. After all, who was better to tell the story than the accused? At the very least he could get his side of the tale out there, whether the jury chose to believe it or not. Clearly, Gaara had a similar feeling, as he had rose from his seat before Inoichi was finished speaking. He went through the process of swearing his oath and sitting at the witness stand before Inoichi began his questioning.

"Gaara, please tell the court exactly what happened that night."

"I was in my room with my boyfriend. We were making out, playing around a bit, when my dad came home early. I don't know why he came home so early – from what I could tell, though, he had already been drinking a bit that night, and I've since learned that he lost his job that day. In any case, I wasn't expecting him when he came barging into my room to find me and my boyfriend in a compromising position."

The redhead sighed before continuing his speech in his somber tone. "That's when he snapped. He attacked me – told me he always hated me, that he blamed me for my mother's death, said that I should never have been born – and I just sat there and took the beating for a while. I felt like I deserved it… his words really got to me. When I realized that he was actually going to kill me, though, I decided I had to fight back. I kicked him in the nose, and that was it. He died on the spot."

"Thank you very much, Gaara. Your Honor."

It pained Naruto to hear Gaara tell that story almost as much as it hurt the redhead to tell it. The memories that came rushing back, knowing how his own father had died, how his own life had been saved by taking Kyuubi's – the blond struggled to keep it together, especially when Ibiki approached the stand to cross-examine the witness.

_That bastard! He doesn't know what we went through, and yet here he is, trying to make Gaara out to be some heartless killer…_

Inoichi took his seat with a graceful bow as Ibiki rose in turn. The prosecutor approached the stand and eyed Gaara warily. "Tell me, Gaara – you heard what Mr. Abiru was saying earlier. Is any of what he said true?"

"Yes," the redhead replied, closing his eyes painfully.

"What part of what he said is true?"

"That I killed his son. That I provoked him so I could fight him as much as I wanted. That my dad moved us over here to Konoha so he could protect his good name. That he resented me for what happened…"

"And the part about you provoking your father into attacking you?"

"No – he was wrong about that," Gaara replied, shooting the lawyer a sharp glare.

"I see," Ibiki murmured, smirking at the teen's anger. "No further questions, Your Honor."

"The defense may call its next witness."

"I call Rock Lee to the stand."

Upon Inoichi's word, Lee rose beside Naruto and headed nervously towards the witness stand. He made his oath with unnecessary earnestness and sat down, shifting uncomfortably as the lawyer paced back and forth. "Lee, please tell us what you remember from that night."

"Well, Gaara and I were up in his room… kissing… when his dad came home. He was early – really early – and we weren't expecting him at all. When he came in and saw us together, he went berserk. He was swearing, ranting about how his son was a faggot, and how his mother would be so ashamed. He pushed me back against the wall – I was so afraid after that. I knew he was serious – he was going to kill us. That's when he punched Gaara, one blow after another. I thought he was going to die right then and there… I was so scared, but I couldn't look away."

"You couldn't look away? So you can tell us what happened next?"

Lee nodded. "I guess Gaara finally came to his senses, because he finally started protecting himself. He blocked a punch, and started squeezing his dad's fist. Maybe that's when the bone fractured, like the doctor said. Then he tackled his dad to the ground and started strangling him. I… I'd never seen that side of Gaara – that ferocity. Maybe it was because he wanted to protect me, or maybe he just knew it was either him or his dad, but he was determined to win that fight. When his dad broke free from Gaara, he came charging at him again, and that's when Gaara kicked him in the nose. He looked shocked by what happened – I don't think he really thought about it. It was more of a reflex than anything else."

"Thank you, Lee. No more questions, Your Honor."

"The prosecution may cross-examine the witness," Mifune announced as he scribbled another note.

Again, Ibiki rose and eyed Lee curiously for a moment before speaking. "Tell me, Lee – how long had you known Gaara before this all happened?"

"Personally? We were only really friends for a few weeks, at most," Lee replied somewhat shyly.

"Is that so? And in that short time the two of you became… intimate, let's say?"

"We became boyfriends, yes."

"You see, I find that very interesting. In just a short amount of time, the two of you became quite close – it almost sounds too good to be true, like it was planned out from the beginning."

"No! You're wrong."

"I believe Gaara set up this relationship intentionally, just so he could incite his father into attacking you…"

"But we didn't think he'd be home so soon!"

"It's the perfect alibi, isn't it? Lee, your boyfriend used you so he could end his father's life once and for all!"

Naruto gritted his teeth and muttered, "That _jackass!_"

"Objection, Your Honor! He's badgering the witness," Inoichi interjected, indicating Lee's increasingly emotional state.

"Sustained. Ibiki, keep the argumentative questions to a minimum," Mifune said, wagging his finger at the prosecutor."

Fuming silently, Ibiki waved a hand. "No further questions, then."

"Very well, then the defense may call forth its next witness," Mifune said, nodding to Inoichi.

"Then we call Naruto Uzumaki to the stand."

Naruto froze up immediately. This was it. He had already talked everything over with Inoichi – all he had to do was say what he'd said earlier, and he'd be fine. So why was he so nervous? Maybe it was the fact that Gaara's future rested on his testimony, or maybe it was Ibiki's intense stare – the idea that he might break under that gaze and let something slip. When Iruka placed a hand on his shoulder, though, Naruto realized there was no time to delay. His friend needed him now, whether he was ready or not.

"Go ahead, Naruto. You'll do fine," Iruka whispered, patting his son on the back as the blond rose.

"Thanks, Dad."

With that, Naruto passed by Lee on his way to the witness stand, where he took his oath before sitting down. Inoichi looked at him calmly before speaking. "Okay, Mr. Uzumaki, as we all know you were the one to speak with Gaara after he fled the scene of the accident. He went to the top of the Konoha Bridge, and you climbed up after him. Can you tell us what happened up there?"

Naruto took a deep breath. "Well, we went to the bridge thinking that Gaara might try something drastic. We thought he might try to run away, so we thought we could cut him off at the bridge. Instead, we found him at the top, and we all feared that he might jump. I couldn't just stand by and let my friend take his own life, so I went up after him to try and talk some sense into him. He was… unstable – that was the first thing I noticed. Obviously what happened with his father had shocked him greatly. I've never seen Gaara like that – so emotionally shaken. It was like the wall of stoicism he had built ever since he was a kid was shattered in an instant, and everything was laid bare. He knocked me down at one point, because he was afraid of what he might do if I stopped him. He couldn't bare the thought of hurting someone again."

"This fear of harming others, can you elaborate on that?"

The blond nodded. "Well, just from what I understand from Gaara's life, he's always felt responsible for the suffering of those around him. His mother died during childbirth, and he always felt like he robbed his family of their mother. Even when he tried to be helpful, somehow people wound up suffering. His father's death was the last straw – it seemed as if the only way he could live was by taking the lives of others."

"And you're saying this is why he wanted to kill himself?"

"That's right," Naruto replied, his brow sweating as the court listened intently to his every word. "He thought ending his life was the only way to keep everyone else from suffering. He told me that as much as he hated his father sometimes, he still loved him – that's what hurt so badly. To take the life of someone you care so much about… I can't imagine what he went through. I told him that there were still people who loved him and cared about him, though, and that he would only end up hurting us if he decided to take his own life. That's when he decided to come down – because the rest of his family and friends showed up to talk some sense into him."

"Very well. Thank you very much – you've been most helpful. No further questions, Your Honor."

"Ibiki – you may cross-examine the witness at this time."

Nodding to the judge, Ibiki approached the witness stand and stared at Naruto with an almost menacing focus. He smiled. "Mr. Uzumaki… how did you come to know the defendant?"

"We met at school. He was attacking my boyfriend, and I jumped in to stop him. We gave each other quite a beating," Naruto said, laughing at the thought.

"So Mr. Subakuno has been a violent individual as far as you can remember."

"I would say he was troubled – he just chose to express it through violence.

"Troubled?" Ibiki asked, raising an eyebrow skeptically. "That's an interesting way to put it. What makes you say he was troubled, and not just a sociopath?"

Naruto glared at the prosecutor. "Because he and I are the same. I'm the son of Kyuubi – the same Kyuubi responsible for those murders in Mizu over ten years ago. Gaara and I have both been hated for as long as we can remember for things that we had no control over. I know the bitterness that comes with that, but I was lucky enough to find love before I could sink as far into hatred as Gaara did. I had my father, and…"

At that point, the courtroom door creaked open, revealing Kakashi and Sasuke, who looked around awkwardly for a seat. Naruto sighed in relief at the sight, his lips curling unconsciously into a warm smile. "And my boyfriend."

"And you're telling me that the two of you became friends even though you started off fighting?" Ibiki asked, ignoring the two new arrivals.

"We became friends _because_ we started off fighting. He couldn't understand why I would want to defend my boyfriend – to him, the only person that mattered was himself. I showed him that it was possible to care about other people – that he could have friends, that he could even _love_."

"Then he met Lee and fell in love just as quickly, I presume?"

Naruto nodded once more. He wiped his sweaty hands on his black dress pants. "Actually, he fell in love with me first. When I turned him down, he realized that he could have feelings for others, and the next thing I knew, he and Lee were together. It did happen quite quickly, but there was a lot changing in his life at the time. He started getting along better with his siblings, too – I think I knocked some sense into him with that headbutt, or something."

Glancing over at the defense table, Naruto found Gaara smirking back at him. It was only a slight smile, but it was about as big of a smile as the blond could've expected, considering the source.

Ibiki placed a hand to his forehead and sighed before turning his back to the witness stand. "No further questions."

"Very well. Do you have any further witnesses, Inoichi?" Mifune grumbled, tapping his fingers on the bench.

"The defense rests, Your Honor."

"Then the prosecution may make its closing remarks."

Rising, Ibiki faced the jury and addressed them in his usual gruff tone. "Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, the defense has tried today to pull the sheep's wool over your eyes. They have argued that what happened to the victim was an act of self-defense, but I urge you to take a closer look at the facts. The defendant withheld information regarding the fight, as he failed to mention that he had in fact strangled his father before delivering that blow to the nose. He had already made the decision to fight back – it was no accident that he killed his father in that room. That was a blow delivered with skill and precision – he knew precisely what he was doing. Furthermore, consider the defendant's history. He killed Mr. Abiru's son back in Suna by his own admission. He has a history of violence here in Konoha as well, having fought one of his own friends here. He is a violent individual, and a danger to society, so I urge you to do the right thing and put him away where he can't harm again. Thank you."

The room was silent as Ibiki took his seat. Naruto watched in awe from his seat beside Iruka – the man had been quite convincing. It made Naruto sick just to think about it, but he knew that the jury must have had some mixed thoughts on the case. Had he done enough to prove Gaara's innocence? Was he even sure if Gaara was innocent? Sure, he believed that the redhead hadn't killed his father, but just because he believed it didn't mean it was true. And if Naruto was having doubts, being one of Gaara's best friends, what did that mean for the jury?

_Please, Mr. Yamanaka… show them Gaara's innocent…_

"The defense may make its closing remarks at this time."

Rising in turn, Inoichi stood before the jurors once more and cleared his throat. "Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, the prosecution would have you think that we are trying to fool you today. He wants you to believe that we are trying to let a guilty man go free, but in reality, it is he who wants to put an innocent teenager in prison. Yes, there are some gaps in Gaara's story, but you have to remember the traumatic experience he went through that night. He killed his father, and almost killed himself as a result. Does that sound like the response of a cold-blooded murderer? No – that is the cry for help from a boy who lost his only parent in a tragic accident, the desperate act of one who could not bear to live with himself for the act he committed. The victim's death was truly a loss for everyone involved – do not put this family through any more heartbreak by putting my client behind bars. He's suffered enough as it is.

"Remember also that my client is innocent until proven guilty. The only evidence the prosecution has presented is circumstantial. There is no hard evidence to prove that my client murdered his father – instead, all he we can say is that the victim died as a result of some fight. The only witnesses to this incident have told you their sides of the story – only they know for certain what happened. You've heard both sides speak their case, now it's up to you to decide who's right. I'm sure you'll make the correct decision on the side of justice. Thank you."

With that, Inoichi returned to his seat, and Mifune banged his gavel once. "The jurors are now dismissed to deliberate on the case. We will now recess until a verdict has been reached."

While those around him began to shuffle about, many heading to the restrooms or the lobby to chat, Naruto simply say with his head in his hands. His heart was pounding.

_I only hope we did enough for him…_

XXXXX

Gaara sat beside Inoichi, staring up at the ceiling fan revolving slowly overhead. The way it passed before the light reminded him of a group of vultures, hovering over a dying creature and waiting to tear at his flesh. In some morbid way, it was funny. The vultures had been waiting for years for Gaara to die – people like Abiru, his father, Ibiki. None of them wanted him around, and if they could throw him in prison to rot for the rest of his life, then it was all the better.

In spite of himself, Gaara felt his fist tighten, the nails digging into his palm until they drew blood. It wasn't _fair. _Even in death, his father was doing everything in his power to hold him back, to _crush_ him. Sometimes he felt as though the entire world was secretly out to get him – taking revenge on him for the crime of birth.

"How are you feeling?"

The voice caught Gaara off guard. Somehow, in his frustration, he had lost sense of his surroundings, and hadn't even noticed as his beloved mop-top approached from behind. Glancing over at Lee, Gaara felt instantly guilty – it wasn't true. Not _everyone_ was out to get him. There were still those like Naruto and Lee, or Temari and Kankuro – people who truly cared for him.

_It's time for me to be honest with them. I can't go on hiding what I'm feeling all the time…_

"I'm scared, Lee," the redhead admitted, his hand trembling. "I don't know what's going to happen. I don't want to go to prison… not when I finally have something to live for…"

He bit his lip and looked to the side, too ashamed of his weakness to look his boyfriend in the eye. When Lee gripped his hand, though, Gaara could feel a similar fear in that touch, and he was forced to glance up at the other teen. There, he saw a mixture of anxiety and determination – a combination Gaara never thought imaginable.

"I know, Gaara… but it doesn't matter. _I_ know you're innocent, regardless of what the jury thinks. We'll appeal if we have to, we'll take it all the way to the Supreme Court, to God if we have to."

"That's insane…"

"Anything is possible in the springtime of youth!" Lee insisted, gripping Gaara's hand even tighter. "I don't care what they say, I won't rest until you're free to live the rest of your life with me!"

Gaara felt a surge of warmth run through his veins. It was stupid, it was crazy, and it was just what he needed to hear. "Thank you, Lee."

Nothing else needed to be said. Lee sat down beside the redhead, and together they scanned the courtroom, studying the faces of the others. Gaara found some that looked on him with scorn, obviously believing him to be guilty, while others were sympathetic – they knew he was innocent. The majority, though, viewed him with suspicion. After hearing both sides, they were uncertain whether Gaara was an unfortunate victim, or a dirty criminal.

And then there were Naruto, Sasuke, and their parents. They were talking things over in the back of the room – it appeared to be a combination of the case and some other business. Gaara assumed it had something to do with the Akatuski Corporation, based on what he had heard about Itachi in the past week.

_Uchiha… you were just like me a few days ago. You'd felt like you'd lost everything, and you were ready to give up. I had to make you realize that you had so much more to live for. I don't know why you would ever run away from Naruto, but I suppose depression's like that sometimes – it doesn't make sense. We're too blinded by our own selfish thoughts to realize how good we have it. Love really can do wonders, I guess…_

While Gaara had these thoughts pass through his mind, Naruto and Sasuke broke away from their parents and started towards the redhead. Before he realized it, the couple was standing before him, looking quite compassionate.

"We're behind you all the way, Gaara," Naruto said, placing a hand on the teen's shoulder.

"That's what friends are for, after all," Sasuke added, nodding his head in agreement.

With all of his past thoughts weighing on his mind, Gaara only stared at Sasuke with his usual mask of stoicism. This wasn't the time or the place to be open with Uchiha – that could wait until he was free. "Thank you… both of you."

Before another word could be said, the bailiff's loud voice cut through the room. "All rise for the Honorable Judge Mifune!"

Those in the courtroom scrambled to their seats and stood as the judge returned the bench. Moments later, the jurors filed in as well. Gaara's heart raced. This was it, the moment of truth.

"You may be seated," Mifune said before turning to the jurors. "Has the jury reached a verdict?"

The head juror nodded. "We find the defendant, Gaara Subakuno, not guilty."

Naruto and the rest of Gaara's supporters let out a cheer as Mifune pounded his gavel for order. Inoichi slapped the redhead on the back and vigorously shook his hand. As for Gaara himself, he just stared up at the judge, tears of relief running freely down his cheeks.

* * *

Well, there you have it. Gaara's been cleared, and Sasuke's business has been sold. Our heroes are entering a new chapter in their lives as we enter a new chapter in their story next time in _For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him!_


	46. Put it in Your Pantry with Your Cupcakes

Hello, dear readers! Another shorter chapter today, but I think it's a needed break after that longer chapter last time. Anyway, thank you so much for reading, as usual, and a special thanks to those of you who reviewed. Your comments are very helpful! Now, then, without further ado, on with the chapter!

* * *

46. Put it Your Pantry with Your Cupcakes

A month passed in the blink of an eye for Sasuke. One day he was signing over the Uchiha Corporation to the government and watching Gaara get exonerated, the next he and Kakashi were hauling boxes into their new house in the suburbs of Konoha. Standing there was a box of his clothes in his hands, Sasuke eyed the house uncertainly. It was definitely not as nice as the old Uchiha mansion was, though he knew it was still an above average home. It was white, with two floors, a two-stall garage, and a spacious lawn. It fit in perfectly with the other homes in the neighborhood, many of which looked practically identical, with only slight variations in color and decoration. Glancing at his neighbors, Sasuke noted the presence of both lawn gnomes and lawn flamingos on either side and shuddered.

"Well, here we are. Home sweet home," Kakashi concluded as he kicked the door to the U-haul shut, cradling a box of kitchen supplies in his arms.

"I guess so," Sasuke replied before heading to the front door. There, with the house keys in his hand, he unlocked the door and pushed it open.

The interior seemed so cold to Sasuke, though he knew this was because it was completely barren. No furniture, no decoration, no appliances – all that the previous owners had left behind were light bulbs and the paint on the wall. Judging from the colors they had chosen for said paint, Sasuke decided their predecessors had as poor of taste as their neighbor. The living room was a lime green, the adjoining family room an odd choice of mauve, and the kitchen was a bubblegum pink. It looked as if someone had opened a box of Crayola crayons and simply colored the walls themselves.

"It's… bright," Sasuke concluded, setting the box on the floor.

"Don't worry – I've already talked with the people down at the Home Depot. We're going to repaint a lot of it," Kakashi said as he lugged his box into the kitchen. "Why don't you go and explore the rest of it real quick? I'll keep unloading the van."

Sasuke nodded and headed up the stairs, noting the sky blue paintjob on the stairwell. When he reached the top hallway, he continued with his hand running along the banister, studying every inch of it thoroughly. Again, the color was positively bizarre – for whatever reason, they had painted the hallway pure black, yet the carpet was scarlet. When he passed an open door, though, he saw only bright colors within. The one nearest the stairwell – the master bedroom – was bright yellow, and Sasuke immediately thought of Naruto's sunshine hair. Another further down the hallway was orange, and again his mind jumped straight to his boyfriend. And then he found what he was certain was to be his room – painted a nice, navy blue with beige carpeting. It wasn't as big as his old room, of course, but he felt relieved. He could get used to this room, at least. And with the bright orange room across the hallway, he had the perfect place for Naruto…

_My word… I'm already thinking about us living together. I must be out of my mind…_

Then it hit him – there _was_ that possibility. After all, Kakashi was dating Naruto's dad. What would happen if they moved in together? Naruto would have to come along, and then they'd be living under the same roof. Across the hall from each other. Sasuke could just imagine sneaking over to that orange room at night and crawling under the covers with his precious blond, just lying there together. It would be summer, most likely, so they'd both be hot and sweaty…

He blushed. Yes, that _would_ be nice. Before any of that could happen, though, there was something he had to do, and he was not particularly looking forward to it. As if he hadn't had enough awkward conversations with Kakashi lately.

Heading back down the black hallway to the stairwell, Sasuke descended to the first floor, where he found Kakashi struggling to move the flat-screen television through the door. With an amused sigh, Sasuke grabbed one end of it, and together they hauled the television into the living room, where they set it down carefully.

"Thank you, Sasuke," a particularly winded Kakashi said as he plopped down on the floor. Sasuke could see why – already the entire room was littered with boxes, furniture, and appliances.

"Want to take a break?" Sasuke offered, taking a seat across from his dad on the hardwood floor.

"That sounds great…" Kakashi replied before lying down with a sigh. "So what do you think of the house?"

"Aside from the paintjob? It's great," the Uchiha said, gazing out the window to their back yard. There were many trees scattered throughout the lawn, their multicolored leaves coating the ground in a way that matched the house's eclectic colors. "I noticed the orange room upstairs… the one by the bathroom at the end of the hallway."

"Did you? What did you think?" Kakashi asked, giving his son a curious glance.

"It seemed like the perfect room for Naruto," Sasuke confessed, blushing once more as his imagination ran wild once more. He and Naruto, tumbling together under the sheets… he hurriedly shook the thought from his head. "That's what you thought too, right?"

Kakashi smiled behind his mask. "It crossed my mind, yes. I thought it would be easier to buy a three-bedroom house now, in case… well… things get serious."

"You really like him, don't you? Iruka, I mean."

"He helped me get through this past month, that's for sure. I'm not sure if I could've done it without him. So much happened… for both of us, of course. I bet you feel the same way about Naruto, don't you?"

"You have no idea…" Sasuke replied, chuckling to himself.

"Oh, but I do. Did you forget how I was before I met Iruka, Sasuke? Remember that day we talked in the teachers' lounge about Obito? That had been eating away at me for years… I was so lonely, but I felt so guilty about his death that I didn't dare try to change anything. I felt like I deserved to suffer. If this past month with Itachi, your running away, and this Akatsuki thing had been added on top of that, I'm not sure if I could've made it. Since he was there, though… well, it was one less burden to bear. And I have you to thank for it, Sasuke," Kakashi said, raising his head to get a better look at his son.

"Me?"

Kakashi nodded. "If you hadn't cleared my senses like you did, I never would've gone to that bar that night… I never would've met Iruka. I probably would've been lonely for the rest of my life. But now, for the first time in a long time, I feel like I'm actually _happy_. I have a boyfriend, I have a _son_… things are finally getting back on track."

"So… are you going to ask him to move in with us?" Sasuke asked somewhat awkwardly.

"Not right away, no – and I would never ask him unless you were comfortable with it. After all, it was your business that paid for this house, right? It's only fair."

"But you will be having him over, I'm assuming."

The silver-haired man shook his head with a chuckle. "Well… yes. I promise we'll be discreet, though, if we happen to get intimate. Is that what you're wondering?"

Sasuke looked to the side ashamedly. "No… not exactly, I mean."

Kakashi sat up and leaned forward, ruffling his son's hair. "I know it must seem strange to you… knowing I'm dating your boyfriend's dad. It's weird for me, knowing you're dating my boyfriend's son. I think we can make it work, though."

"I know… it's just going to take some getting used to. It'll be an adjustment for all of us," Sasuke concluded, gazing up at the lime green walls. "I'm just sorry I freaked out the way I did."

"No, that was my fault. I knew who Iruka was, but I was afraid to tell you, because I wasn't sure how you would react. If I had just been honest with you as soon as I found out, then maybe you wouldn't have been so shocked to catch Iruka and I… well, in that state."

"Maybe… I think it was just too much, though. After what I'd just been though with Naruto, the whole idea of you and Iruka going at it seemed so… wrong," Sasuke said, feeling foolish as the words left his lips. "I know none of us are even related, so it shouldn't matter – and it doesn't – but it mattered to me at the time."

Pulling himself closer to Sasuke, Kakashi leaned in and placed a hand on the teen's shoulder. "Look, Sasuke… you went through a lot that night – I understand that. But if you have a problem with Iruka and I being together, then now's the time to say it. Let it all out. I don't want you to freak out and run away to Suna again because you decided to keep everything bottled up inside."

It was a twisted kind of joke, meaning it was right up Sasuke's alley. He laughed. "I know – I've learned my lesson. For me, as long as the two of you are happy, then that's all that matters."

"You're okay with the idea that we might all be a family one day?"

"It's weird, but, like I said, it's not like any of us are related. We'll just be a… more _intimate_ family," Sasuke returned with a twisted joke of his own.

"Exactly!" Kakashi said, laughing aloud. "Now all I have to do is convince Iruka… that's going to be tricky."

"Yeah, he's a bit more uptight, isn't he? I can only imagine how he would've reacted if he'd known I was dating his son when he found me naked in Naruto's bed that day."

"I think it's safe to say he would've castrated you with a rusty fork," Kakashi deadpanned.

"Well, it wouldn't be the first time someone threatened to do that…"

"Now, since you brought it up… about you and Naruto," Kakashi began with an air of nonchalance. "I know the two of you have already had sex. I think you know that that was a mistake – you weren't ready for it."

"You're not going to give me the birds and bees talk, are you?" the Uchiha asked, half-pleadingly.

"No, I won't put you through that. I've had to teach one of those sex ed classes before," the teacher said with a shudder. "You're not sleeping around with everyone you meet – it's just you and Naruto, and I think you've learned now to save sex until you're ready, right?"

"Do you have a point with this?" Sasuke said, growing annoyed with Kakashi's rambling.

"All I'm saying, Sasuke, is that if you have Naruto over, and you decide to go up to your room and not come back down until the next morning, I'll just assume you're… _studying_, okay?" Kakashi said with a wink.

"Fair enough. And when you and Iruka go to your room and don't come down until morning, I'll assume you're having steamy sex."

It was Kakashi's turn to blush, eliciting a triumphant smirk from the Uchiha. As Sasuke rose to head back out to the U-haul, though, his dad called out one final time, determined to one-up the teen. "He did use a condom, right?"

Sasuke froze, but turned to Kakashi with his best poker face. "What makes you think he was on top?"

"You're not fooling me, Sasuke – I'm pretty sure that limp you had afterwards didn't come from pulling your groin," the teacher replied with a raised eyebrow. "So, did he?"

Defeated, Sasuke faced the door once more, hiding his crimson face from his dad. "Yes, he did."

Knowing just the kind of satisfied smirk that would be on Kakashi's face, Sasuke stormed out to the U-haul and continued unpacking.

_I guess some things never change… he's still a pervert. I can't believe he actually asked me that…_ _I can't believe I answered him! _

With a box in one hand and his treasured katana slung over his back, Sasuke started back towards the house and laughed silently. They really were a strange family.

XXXXX

Gaara Subakuno stood in Konoha Cemetery that Saturday afternoon, staring down at the grave he had helped fill. He had avoided the funeral. He had thought about it, but he couldn't bear the thought of going. Now that the trial was over, though, he felt he had no more excuses. The time had come to confront his fears, and bid his father farewell.

The sun shined high overhead that day, making the cemetery look truly peaceful. Row after row of monuments and tombstones with the sunlight reflecting on their surfaces as a light breeze sent a few of the autumn leaves tumbling across the paved path. Gaara zipped up his dark red jacket as the cool air sent a shiver down his body.

_Why isn't he here yet? He said he'd be here by one o'clock…_

Looking from side to side anxiously, Gaara searched for his desired companion, but to no avail. The only people there besides him were a weeping widow laying flowers at a fallen soldier's grave and a groundskeeper raking leaves further down the hill. Other than that, it was just Gaara and his dad, the living and the dead, killer and the killed.

"Well, Dad… here we are," he said, staring down at the epitaph. " 'Here lies Kaze Subakuno – beloved husband, father, and friend.' Figures they'd remember you like that. More like 'Here lies Kaze Subakuno – bastard, deadbeat, and drunk.'"

Gaara felt his hands curl into fists as he focused on the tombstone. "I hated you. Always. You never cared about me – you turned the whole family against me, and even in your last moments, you were trying to kill me and the one I love. You always called me a monster, a heartless killer, but _you_… _you_ were the real monster."

A shadow passed by on the ground as a flock of geese flew overhead. Gaara sighed. "And yet… I pity you. I know how miserable you must've been… how lonely you were. Because I was like that once… I guess the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. I would've become like you – angry, violent, and alone. I can see me in you… which is why I also love you, Dad," the redhead said, biting his lip to stop the welling tears. "I hate you for what you were, but I love you for what I know was once there. I love you, because that's all I ever wanted from you, and but you were so blinded by your hatred you could never give it…

"I'm not sorry for what I did, Dad. I had to protect myself… protect Lee… you left me with no other choice. I'm just sorry that you'll never know the happiness I've found in these past few months."

A single tear rolled down Gaara's cheek and dripped onto the grave before he quickly wiped his eyes with his jacket sleeve. One tear was all he was going to give – it was time to move on and enjoy life for a change. It was only after his eyes were dry, however, that the redhead heard the crunching of leaves behind him. Glancing over his shoulder, he found Naruto approaching, his hands in his orange pants pockets, wearing black, long-sleeved shirt. From the guilty look on his face, Gaara knew he hadn't just arrived.

"Sorry I'm late," Naruto offered with a sheepish smile.

"How long have you been standing there?" Gaara said, turning back to the grave.

"I think it was around 'bastard, deadbeat, and drunk.'"

The redhead sighed, "So you heard everything."

"I guess so, yeah," Naruto admitted, shifting his feet uncomfortably. "You wanted to talk to me about something?"

"Yeah… I've been thinking. I owe you guys for your support through all of this. I know you've had problems of your own, but you've been by my side despite that. So, I want to make it up to you."

"Gaara, there's no need for that…"

Gaara held up a hand, cutting him off instantly. "No, I insist. I want to show you guys how much I appreciate what you've done for me."

"Well… what did you have in mind?"

"A party," Gaara said flatly. "I know the last one we had could've gone better, since I was still new to the group. Maybe this time I can open up a bit more…"

Naruto's eyes brightened as an idea sprung to life. "I know! It can be a housewarming party for Sasuke and Kakashi! They just moved in today – we can surprise them with decorations, gifts… everything!"

"As long as it's not _just_ for Uchiha," the redhead added, feeling the blond was getting carried away. "Remember, I want this to be for everyone."

"Of course, of course – we can just kill two birds with one stone this way."

"That works, I suppose. Should we start making some calls?"

"I can get Kiba and Choji onboard. Iruka, too. I haven't seen much of Shikamaru lately, though," Naruto said, rubbing his chin in thought.

"That's because he's been over at my house with Temari. I can get the two of them to come along. And Lee, of course."

"Perfect!" Naruto exclaimed, clapping his hands together for emphasis. "This is a great idea, Gaara."

"Thanks, that means a lot. I'm… not really experienced with this type of thing," Gaara said somewhat embarrassedly.

"You'll get better, I'm sure. Anyway, I'll go and make some calls. Was there anything else you wanted to talk about while I'm here?"

_Besides how I called you out here so I could talk to you about my father, because I thought you of all people would be the one to understand my pain? Or how I still dream that we might somehow end up together, despite how much I love Lee? How I almost wished Sasuke didn't come back from Suna, so I might have a chance with you once again?_

"No… nothing."

"All right – I'll see you later, then!" Naruto called out as he began running down the path out of the cemetery, leaving Gaara alone once more.

The redhead kicked a leaf off to the side as he continued to stare at his grave. Despite his lingering feelings for Naruto, he was surprised by how little it hurt now. At first, the thought that he would be giving Naruto up to Sasuke was the most painful thing imaginable. But now, it was almost as if he'd come to accept it. That was simply reality – he could dream of being with Naruto all he wanted, but it would never come to be. For that reason, it was more warming than anything else, being around Naruto. Lee had captured his heart, but those feelings would always remain.

_I guess Naruto was right… there is room for more than one person in my heart…_

Taking a last look at his father's grave, Gaara felt no regrets. He had thought he'd need Naruto to confront his father once and for all. Instead, he discovered that his friends had only made him stronger. Love, loss, and suffering – they'd made him into a more stable person.

And, as strange as it seemed, he was happy.

"Goodbye, Dad."

* * *

And, with that, we end the story of Gaara and his father, and begin the new stage of Sasuke and Kakashi's lives. How is Gaara's planned party going to work out? And will anything change now that Sasuke and Kakashi are living in the same space? What about their love lives? Are Naruto and Iruka going to be okay with the new arrangements? Find out next time in _For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him, _and, as usual, review!


	47. Homeward Bound

Good day, dear readers! Here's what I consider the housewarming party, part 1. I didn't originally intend to split it up like this, but some changes happened along the way, and it simply would've been too long all together. Hopefully you all will enjoy it, in any case. Anyway, as usual, thank you for reading, and without further ado, on with the chapter!

* * *

47. Homeward Bound

"You're sure they're coming?"

"For the last time, Kiba, yes! Iruka's bringing them back here in just a few minutes. Now hurry up and get into position."

The sound of shattering glass filled the room. Naruto sighed in exasperation.

"What was that?"

"Umm… nothing, Naruto."

"Choji, did you drop your glass?" Silence. "I told you to wait till the lights were on…"

"But I was thirsty!"

"Leave him alone, Shika. We have to time clean it all up, right?"

"So troublesome…"

"Kiba, hit the lights again, will you?"

Suddenly, the dark entryway of Sasuke and Kakashi's house lit up, revealing a room full of teenagers. Choji stood in the middle of a puddle of soda and broken glass. Kiba stood near the light switch at the entrance. Naruto was in the middle of the room, directing Gaara and Lee to the kitchen while Shikamaru and Temari rushed to the bathroom for towels.

Ten minutes before the housewarming party had even begun, it was looking like a total disaster.

Aside from the broken glass and spilled soda, there was the fact that the party store had mixed up their order. Instead of receiving several dozen multicolored balloons and a banner reading "Welcome Home," they instead had black balloons and an "Over the Hill" sign. Kiba had insisted that they use the supplies anyway, since, for one, they were free, and two, they were better than nothing. Then there was Lee, who had somehow gotten the impression that this was a costume party, despite Gaara's insistence to the contrary. Cleaning up the glass by Choji's feet, he was dressed as a 1960s version of Robin, complete with a red shirt, black cape, domino mask, and a green Speedo. Despite the fact that he was the only one dressed up, Lee insisted on staying in costume and, as well as he could, in character.

"Holy Spillage, Batman!"

"Not now, Lee," Naruto said, shaking his head at the sight.

_As bad as it looks right now, I'm still amazed we were able to throw this together so quickly. We only started planning this thing last Saturday, and here we are, a week later. Not terrible, all in all._

Suddenly, the doorbell rang. Everyone in the room froze as they heard Kakashi's voice come from the other side of the door.

"Why'd you ring? We're right here, Iruka."

"Ah, you're right. How silly of me… haha…"

Turning to the others, Naruto began issuing orders in a hushed voice. "Hurry! To your positions, everyone!"

Once the others had rushed to their positions beneath the banner, Kiba flicked off the light and darted over to the group. The only problem was, in the dark, he couldn't see the group all too well, and he wound up crashing into them instead. Thus, when Sasuke, Kakashi, and Iruka entered the house and turned on the lights, they found only a tangled mass of limbs amidst the decorations. After a few moments of silence, it was finally Sasuke who eloquently voiced the others' thoughts.

"What the hell?"

"Umm… surprise?" Naruto offered with a sheepish grin before being inadvertently kicked in the face by Lee.

Shaking his head, Iruka ran a hand through his hair and looked over to Kakashi with an amused smile. "Well, we were trying to surprise the two of you with a housewarming party. That's why I kept you guys out all afternoon."

"I'm relieved," Kakashi replied, glancing up at the 'Over the Hill' banner. "I didn't think I'd aged that quickly."

After the pile of teens slowly clambered off one another, Naruto stood and attempted to get the party back on track. "So, would you like to join us in the kitchen? We have all kinds of goodies for you."

"Holy presents, Batman!"

Sasuke gave Lee a confused look before shrugging his shoulders. It was for the best not to ask. "All right – let's go."

With that, the group processed into the kitchen, which was covered with sheets, half the wall having been painted white, the other still bubblegum pink. As soon as Kakashi and Sasuke turned the corner, however, they were astonished by the group of presents sitting on the table. While it was certainly not the mountain of presents Sasuke was used to receiving on his birthday, Naruto could tell that the Uchiha was touched. After all, these weren't just gifts from Itachi – they were presents from his friends and family, bought using their hard earned money, and not their ludicrous inheritance.

"Iruka… you shouldn't have done this," Kakashi said in a hushed tone.

"Most of them aren't from me. Naruto and his friends _insisted_ on bringing them," Iruka responded, picking up the nearest box. It was covered in a ball of tissue paper and taped together haphazardly. Kakashi didn't even need to read the tag to know whom it was from, which was good, since there was no name to be found.

"I take it this is yours, Shikamaru?" Kakashi asked taking a seat by the table as he studied the package. Sasuke soon joined him, chuckling.

"Of course it is. Just open it, Kakashi."

"Actually, Temari helped pick it out," Shikamaru said, flinching as his girlfriend ruffled his hair.

"What do you mean 'helped'? You just stood there looking bored while I went through the whole store."

"The whole mall's more like it…" Shikamaru muttered, only to flinch more visibly as Temari's playful ruffling upgraded to an all-out noogie.

"Let's see what it is, then," Kakashi concluded as he tore off the tissue paper. There, he and Sasuke found a stainless steel gravy boat, which caused them both to raise their eyebrows in confusion.

"See, Shika! They're speechless!" Temari exclaimed as she threw her arms around the lazy genius's neck, strangling him in her embrace.

"That's one way of putting it." Shikamaru eked out before gasping for breath.

"Thank you, you two," Kakashi said, forcing a smile as he set the gravy boat on the table. "That was very thoughtful. Oh! Let's see… what do we have here?"

They continued in this manner for a few minutes, going through the presents one by one. Kiba had bought them a knife rack in the shape of a human, with various slots in the head, torso, and limbs for knives. Gaara and Lee had decided on a doormat reading, quite cleverly, "Welcome." Choji had bought them a box of chocolate – actually, two boxes, but only one of them made it to the party intact. Iruka's several gifts included scented candles, some high thread-count sheets, bath beads, and a dimmer switch. Naruto felt the urge to vomit when he realized just what his dad was planning with those particular gifts.

As for Naruto himself, he had spent most of the week trying to find the perfect gift. He wanted something to commemorate Sasuke and Kakashi's new life together, something that summed up their new relationship succinctly. After visiting many stores throughout the city, though, he hadn't found a thing. So, it was with a feeling of failure that he had settled on a lava lamp, which almost made him cringe as he watched Sasuke unwrap it.

"Holy 70s nostalgia, Batman!"

"Give it a rest, Lee," Gaara muttered, shaking his head in a mixture of irritation and embarrassment.

Sasuke examined the lamp for a moment and smiled. "I've always wanted one of these. How'd you know?"

Naruto was stunned. "I… umm… lucky guess?"

_He's really into that kind of thing? Maybe he likes it for mood lighting…_

Realizing that he was unconsciously licking his lips, Naruto hurriedly turned his head to the side and started towards the basement. "All right! Since the presents are all opened, let's head downstairs!"

"You kids go on ahead. I'm going to give Iruka a tour here," Kakashi replied, waving dismissively at the teens as he gathered up Iruka's presents. Not one to be so easily fooled, Sasuke made sure to get the last word in before disappearing through the door to the basement.

"Go get him, tiger."

Although Naruto could begin to hear Kakashi's protests from above, they were silenced the moment Sasuke slammed the door shut. Descending the stairs, the blond glanced back to see a very satisfied smirk on his boyfriend's face.

_Maybe this won't be such a disaster after all…_

Turning the corner to face the open area of the basement, Naruto was surprised by what awaited them. Although Sasuke and Kakashi had only been in the house for a week, they had already set up transformed the once vacant basement into a rumpus room. In the corner of the basement was a small door leading to the laundry room – otherwise, the entire foundation was devoted to recreation. Naruto couldn't say that this was _too _shocking – after all, the Uchiha mansion had an entire entertainment wing – but he was still astounded that they had set this up so quickly.

A pool table sat in the middle of the basement, a rack of billiard balls resting in its center. Along the back wall was Sasuke's big-screen television, one of the few things he had insisted they keep in their move from the mansion. To Naruto's left was a bar, with both alcoholic beverages (all locked away) and various sodas, while on the other side was a stereo with a library of CDs. The only thing that Naruto could tell hadn't been changed was the paintjob, as he knew Sasuke would never allow fuchsia to adorn his walls.

"Is that _DDR_ I see over there?" Kiba asked, eyeing the game systems by the television hungrily.

"Yeah. Go ahead and play – it's all plugged in," Sasuke offered as he hopped on a stool beside the bar.

"All right! Come on, Choji! I'll take you on!"

"I wouldn't underestimate him, Kiba. He lost twenty pounds playing that game last summer," Shikamaru warned, grabbing a cue stick off the wall. "Who's up for a game?"

"Holy balls, Batman!" Lee exclaimed as he grabbed another stick. He paused immediately after realizing what he'd said. "Umm… maybe I _should_ stop that."

"Please do," Gaara said as he stepped behind the bar. He set a few glasses out before looking to Naruto and Sasuke expectantly. "So, what'll it be?"

"You're gonna serve us?" Naruto asked somewhat guiltily.

"This party was my idea, right? Leave it to me."

"I'll have a virgin strawberry daiquiri," Sasuke said with a smirk after a moment's thought.

"Coke it is," Gaara replied in a monotone. "And for you, Naruto?"

"Orange soda."

"Way to surprise us there, blondie," Temari said, tugging on Naruto's orange shirt as she sidled up to the bar. "Put me down for lemonade there, Gaara."

Mumbling to himself, Gaara busied himself behind the bar for a moment before presenting the requested drinks. He then looked to the others, who were busy playing pool and _DDR_, asking, "Anything for you guys?"

"Not for me, thanks," Shikamaru responded, glancing up before knocking the 9-ball into the corner pocket.

"Yeah, I'm fine, too," Lee said, frowning as he realized he was far behind in the game.

Neither Choji nor Kiba seemed to hear Gaara, as they were far too focused in their game, their feet moving spastically to the rhythm of the music. Satisfied, Gaara poured himself a glass of water and joined the others on the other side of the bar.

"So, how do you like your new house, Sasuke?" Temari asked before sipping her lemonade.

"It's different, that's for sure," Sasuke said, looking distastefully at the fuchsia walls. "I think I'll like it here, though… once we get it all organized how we like it."

"Do you and Kakashi agree on that kind of thing?" Naruto asked, remembering how Iruka had objected to his suggestion of decorating their living room with a stuffed fox.

"For the most part, yes. We have different ideas with our personal space, but in neutral territory we pretty much see eye to eye."

Naruto tilted his head to the side as he considered this. "What do you mean with your personal space? He doesn't want to use unicorn wallpaper or anything like that, does he?"

Sasuke nearly snorted soda out of his nose at the thought. The fizz burned, but he was laughing too hard to care, and by the time he had recovered, the pain had subsided. "No, no… I just mean, just on an aesthetic level. I like to have a few posters, he wants things to be more plain. But, since we're not planning on sleeping in each other's rooms, that won't be much of an issue."

"What about you, Naruto?" Gaara interrupted suddenly, causing the other three to look at him in surprise. "How do you like the new house?"

"Well… it's nice, I guess. Not that my opinion really matters, of course," Naruto said with a sheepish laugh.

"Sure it does. You do plan on staying here from time to time, right?" Gaara asked before looking to his sister. "Didn't you tell me they had sex?"

Over by the pool table, Shikamaru missed the cue ball completely as his ears perked up. Lee turned towards his boyfriend, shocked by the question. Temari slapped a hand to her face, while Naruto and Sasuke exchanged mortified glances.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Gaara," Temari lied through her teeth.

"Oh, come on. You said that the day after Sasuke left, Shikamaru got a call while the two of you were still in bed…"

Shikamaru's eyes flashed with irritation, while Temari shot her brother a warning look. Gaara apparently missed this warning entirely, as he continued undeterred.

"You told me that it was Naruto, and that he told Shikamaru that Sasuke disappeared after they had sex. Isn't that right?"

Shikamaru appeared to feel betrayed by this revelation, but he didn't say a word, instead choosing to monitor his girlfriend's actions. Temari, meanwhile, decided it was best to bite the bullet and confess. "Fine, Gaara! Yes, I said that. I also told you that it was a _secret_, remember?"

Gaara rolled his eyes. "What's the big deal? It's not like we didn't know they were dating – it was bound to happen sooner or later."

Still horrified that his sex life had become the topic of conversation, Naruto shook his head. Once again, the party was heading towards a train wreck.

_I know Gaara's just trying to fit in, but he obviously hasn't gotten used to usual social interactions yet. I just hope Sasuke knows to be patient…_

Sneaking a peak at his boyfriend, Naruto was chagrined to find that he was gritting his teeth, fighting back the urge to give Gaara a good tongue-lashing. Not knowing what else to do, Naruto placed his hand atop Sasuke's, catching the raven-haired teen's attention before mouthing, 'It's okay.'

Meanwhile, Temari was also trying her best to control her anger towards her brother. "The big deal, Gaara, is that most people consider that topic to be private. We may be friends, but we don't really need to know who's hooking up with who, all right?"

"But we _do_ know who's hooking up with who. You and Shikamaru have been going out for over a month now, same thing with me and Lee, and of course Naruto and Sasuke. I just thought, since they're together, Naruto might want to share his opinion on the house. Would you want to spend the night at Shikamaru's apartment if you didn't like how it looked?"

"Gaara!" Temari began in an elevated tone, only to stop herself by taking a deep breath. She paused before correcting herself in a calmer, but still irritated, voice. "Okay, fine. Naruto, do you like the house?"

"Yes," Naruto answered hurriedly, wishing to end this conversation.

"There's your answer, Gaara. Satisfied?" Temari asked with an exasperated sigh.

"Almost," Gaara responded before turning back to Naruto. "So, were you on top or bottom, Naruto? Because when Lee and I…"

"I know! Who wants to play a game?" Naruto exclaimed, placing a hand over Sasuke's mouth before the Uchiha could let out his planned string of expletives.

"A game, huh? Yeah, that sounds like fun," Temari observed with a playful smirk. "Anyone have a deck of cards?"

"We have some around here somewhere, yeah," Sasuke replied, pushing Naruto's hand out of his face. "Why? What did you have in mind?"

"How about a game of poker?"

"Umm… I didn't bring my wallet," Lee said, setting down his pool cue as Shikamaru sank the last ball in the side pocket. He snapped the waistband of his Speedo to emphasize his lack of pockets.

"Oh, that's all right. You won't need it," Temari continued in her vaguely suggestive manner.

"So… we're playing with chips?" the mop-topped teen asked, failing to read between the lines.

"No, Lee," the tetra-ponytailed teen said, dropping the act, "I'm saying we should play strip poker."

Shikamaru rolled his eyes as he set his own cue stick back on the rack. "You're just trying to humiliate me in front of my friends again, aren't you?"

"Who, me? Never. Oh, come on – don't tell me the boy genius is afraid of a little luck?"

Biting his lip, Shikamaru stared into Temari's taunting gaze for a moment before crumbling. "Fine! I'm in."

"How about you two? Care to join us?" Temari asked, setting her sights on Naruto and Sasuke.

Naruto turned to Sasuke for approval. "Well… it sounds fun to me."

Sasuke shrugged. "Fine, I'll play. It's not like I'm going to lose, after all."

"Okay, that's four. Hey! Choji! Kiba!" Temari shouted over the noise of _DDR_. "Want to play some poker?"

"What? Do I want to try parkour?" Kiba asked, his legs practically a blur.

"No! Do you want to play poker?"

"Sure, you can use it!" Choji called back, gasping for breath as they neared the end of the song.

"I SAID, DO YOU WANT TO PLAY POKER?" Temari roared just as the music faded out, leaving the room almost completely silent save for her booming voice. She looked somewhat embarrassed as the whole room stared at her. "Umm… sorry."

"Sure, I'll play," Kiba said with a grin. "I'm assuming we're playing strip poker, right? It's the only way to go."

"That's the spirit! How about you, Choji?"

"Umm… is everyone else playing?" the chubby teen asked embarrassedly.

"Yeah, why not. We'll play too," Lee said, patting Gaara on the shoulder. "It's no fun if we just sit out."

"There you have it! So are you in?" Temari asked as the others all turned to Choji expectantly.

Under all his friends' stares, it was only a matter of seconds before Choji caved in. "All right, I guess I'll play."

"Great! Everyone grab a stool – we'll use the pool table. Sasuke, you get the cards," Temari said, ordering the guys around as if she were directing traffic.

Naruto was a bit apprehensive about Temari's idea, but he decided to go along with it anyway. Even though the last thing he had planned that day was to see all his friends stripped to their skivvies, he thought it was at least a way for everyone to get involved. And besides, it wasn't much worse than the last party they had – that one had only accidentally resulted in them all being half-naked. At least this time they knew what they were getting themselves into.

Thus, in a few quick moments, they were all seated around the pool table, where Temari began to shuffle the deck like a pro. As she dealt out the cards, she explained the rules in greater detail.

"Okay, we're playing five-card draw. Shoes and socks are worth one apiece, shirts and shorts are worth two, underwear is worth three," Temari said as she finished dealing. "The winner determines what to do with the losers' clothes."

"What? No way," Shikamaru objected, eyeing his girlfriend suspiciously.

"I thought you were planning on winning, Shika. If you're so confident, just pick up your cards and play," Temari said, glancing at her cards. She turned to her left and nodded. "Okay, Lee – your bet."

"Umm… I bet a shoe."

"I fold," Gaara mumbled.

Shikamaru tossed in a shoe as well, while Choji folded quickly. Kiba added his shoe to the pile, as did Sasuke. Naruto stared down at his cards nervously. He had a pair of kings – not half bad. Seeing Temari's poker face was quite intimidating, though.

_Better play it safe…_

"One shoe," he said, tossing the article onto the pile.

"One bra," Temari said immediately, pulling her arms inside her shirt. After fumbling for a moment, she pulled forth a lacy black bra and delicately placed it on top. "That's worth three. Your move, Lee."

"Fold," Lee said, tossing his cards towards the center of the table.

Without any hesitation, Shikamaru peeled off his mesh shirt and added it to the pile. "There, I'll see your bra."

"I'm sure you will," Temari replied with a playful laugh.

Kiba stripped off his remaining shoe and a sock to stay in, while Sasuke folded. Naruto glanced at his hand again before stripping off his orange shirt. Satisfied, Temari turned to Shikamaru, holding the deck expectantly.

"Well, Shika. How many will it be?"

"Two."

After dealing out the cards, Temari continued down the line. Kiba asked for three, as did Naruto. The blond glanced at his new cards. He still had his pair of kings, but the rest of his hand was garbage. To make things worse, Shikamaru had started a bidding war by tossing in his other shoe and both socks. Kiba realizing he'd have to take off both his shirt and his shorts to stay in, opted to fold. With a sigh, Naruto tossed in his cards as well. It was down to Temari and Shikamaru, and she called by slipping off two shoes and a sock.

"All right, Shika. Let's see what you have."

"Two pair. Queens and 9s," Shikamaru said with a confident smile, laying down his cards. "And you?"

"Three 8s. I win," she said before raking the clothes towards her. "Better luck next time."

Lee took the deck and proceeded to deal out the next hand while Shikamaru grumbled at his loss. No sooner had they looked at their hands, though, than Gaara immediately tossed in his shirt. "I raise."

Shikamaru folded shortly afterward, while Choji took a bit more time looking at his cards before adding his shirt to the pile as well. "I'll play this hand, sure."

Kiba folded next, and while Sasuke bet his shoe and a sock. Glancing at his pathetic hand, Naruto folded quickly, as did Temari, while Lee tossed in his shirt as well, leaving him only in his green Speedo.

Gaara and Sasuke opted not to take any cards, while Lee asked for two, and Choji asked for just one. With no further bets, they laid down their cards. Gaara had a flush, while Sasuke had, appropriately enough, a full house, Lee had an ace high, while Choji was one card away from a straight. Without a word, Sasuke dragged his winnings towards him and smiled triumphantly.

Shivering slightly in his shirtless state, Gaara took the cards and began to deal out the next hand. "I'll get you next time, Uchiha."

"Oh, I'm sorry, did you say something Gaara? I couldn't hear you over the sound of my winnings," Sasuke responded, holding up the redhead's shirt.

After everyone had received their cards, Shikamaru hesitated and studied his hand, biting his lower lip in thought. He finally set down his cards and stood up, undoing the button on his shorts.

Trying to look as dignified as possible, the Nara removed his shorts and set them on the table, leaving him in his gray boxerbriefs. "I bet my shorts."

Laughing, Choji quickly folded and sat back to watch the spectacle unfold. Meanwhile, from his position a few seats away, Naruto could see a greedy glint in Kiba's eye as he stared at his cards. Obviously, the dog-boy's poker face was not his strongest feature. With a grin, he rose and dropped trou, tossing his shorts into the pile while standing in his black briefs. The others were quick to harass him once more about his skimpy underwear, but only shrugged it off.

"You guys are just jealous you can't pull them off, that's all," Kiba said as he took his seat.

"Whatever you say, Kiba," Sasuke responded, shaking his head as he stared at his cards. "Well, I fold."

"Same here," Naruto added, tossing in his cards.

Glancing at her pile of winnings, Temari daintily picked up three socks and added them to the pot. "I raise you boys one sock, then."

Naruto could see the irritation in Shikamaru's face as the significance of Temari's bet dawned on him. He had only his underwear left, meaning if he was going to keep playing, he'd have to bare it all, at least for the remainder of the hand. It was a very sadistic move on Temari's part, but Naruto was sure he would've done the same thing in her position – it was just too good of an opportunity to pass up.

"If that's how it's going to be, then fine," Shikamaru said calmly as he stood up again. Before anyone was at all prepared, he slipped off his boxerbriefs and added it to the pile, covering his goods with one hand. Everyone around the table looked at Shikamaru with a combination of amusement and admiration for the teen's courage.

Taking a close look at his hand, Kiba shook his head before tossing in his cards. "Sorry, I can't do it. I'm out."

"Well, then, I'll see your raise, Shika. Now, how many cards do you want?" Temari asked, holding the deck in anticipation.

"One," the genius responded coolly.

"All right – I only want one myself," she replied, slapping the cards down. "So, what do you have?"

"Full house!" he announced, reaching for the pile of clothes.

"Hold on there, nature boy. I have four 3s. I win," Temari said as she dragged the clothes towards her.

Shikamaru's jaw dropped. He'd been tricked _badly_. His shock only grew worse, however, when Temari glanced at her watch in mock surprise.

"Oh my, would you look at the time? It's almost ten o'clock already. We'd better get going, Shika," she concluded as she scooped up her winnings.

"Get going? Where?" Shikamaru asked, in a near panic.

"Why, back to my house, of course. We have that… thing to do tonight," Temari responded as she sorted through the clothes. "Now, let's see… these were yours, Naruto. And this was yours… and that's yours, Kiba…"

One by one, she returned her winnings to their respective owners, with the exception of Shikamaru. She held on to his clothes, tucking them under one arm while seizing her boyfriend's arm with the other. "All right, let's go."

"What? At least give me back my clothes first!" he protested, covering up with his free hand as he as dragged towards the stairs.

"You heard the rules before we started – the winner gets to decide what to do with the clothes. I decided you should come back home just the way you are," Temari said with a mischievous grin. "Besides, this look suits you."

Shikamaru's protests continued all the way up the stairs before they were too muffled to understand. As soon as they heard the front door to the house slam shut and Temari's car start outside, all the guys left below burst into a fit of laughter. Kiba literally fell off his stool, while Gaara's admittedly more subdued laughs forced him to wipe away a tear.

"That poor guy can't win, can he?" Naruto asked, gasping for breath as he leaned on the pool table.

"No, I'm pretty sure he's going to win tonight, if you catch my drift," Gaara replied knowingly.

"And you're okay with that?" Sasuke asked, remembering Gaara's overprotectiveness.

Gaara shrugged. "He's willing to put up with her – I think that's enough to pass the boyfriend test."

"Just as long as they don't get pulled over on the way home," Choji chimed in, causing them all to laugh aloud once more.

Naruto nodded in agreement. "Can you imagine? 'Umm… hot night, huh, officer?"

"Wouldn't be any worse than that time the two of you went for a swim at Lake Konoha, right?" Kiba added, pointing to Naruto and Sasuke. "They probably still have a notice about you two over there: 'Wanted for Indecent Exposure,' haha!"

Lee suddenly looked concerned. "You don't really think they'll get in trouble, do you?"

Gaara rolled his eyes as he picked up the deck of cards. "No, Lee. It's pitch black outside. The only thing Shikamaru has to worry about is shrinkage from the cold air. So, are you all up for another game, or should we call it a night?"

"Sorry, not me. Temari was right, it is getting kind of late," Choji said, standing up and stretching. "Besides, me and Kiba still have to walk across town to the apartments tonight."

"He's got a point. I have to catch up on my reading, too. Apparently we're supposed to have _The Odyssey_ read by Monday, and I… haven't bought it, yet," Kiba said, scratching his head sheepishly as he got dressed. "Thanks for having us over, though, Sasuke. The house looks great."

"Yeah, thanks a lot," Choji agreed, slipping on his shoes.

"Any time, you guys. It was fun," Sasuke replied, waving goodbye with the others as Choji and Kiba disappeared up the stairs.

Naruto turned towards the remaining guests, leaning forward on the table. "So, what about you guys? Do you need to take off, or do you want to stick around for a little while?"

"I'm up for another game," Gaara replied as he dealt out the cards. "Let's make this a bit interesting though. How about instead of clothes, we bet truths?"

"What do you mean?" Sasuke asked, raising an eyebrow at the redhead. "You apparently already know about our sex lives, what else could you possibly want to know?"

"If you're afraid to play, Uchiha, all you have to do is say so," the redhead challenged as he laid down the final cards.

Naruto looked back and forth between Sasuke and Gaara, feeling anxious at the growing tension in the room. "Maybe this isn't such a good idea, you guys…"

"No, Naruto – it's fine. Let's play," Sasuke responded as he examined his hand. "So, how does this work, Gaara?"

"It's simple. Instead of betting clothes, you can bet a truth. The winner then gets to ask a question, which you must answer. Simply enough?"

Sasuke smiled, sitting upright in his stool. "All right, then. I bet a truth."

Lee, clearly just as nervous about the whole situation as Naruto, gulped. "Umm… I guess I bid one, too."

Naruto set his cards down. "I fold. Look, I really think we should just end this…"

"I bet a truth, too," Gaara said, ignoring Naruto's protests. The redhead then handed out the desired cards to the remaining players. "All right, Uchiha – what do you have?"

"A pair of kings."

Lee frowned. "What's an ace, a ten, a seven, a two, and a jack?"

"Nothing," Gaara replied as he laid down his own cards. "As for me, I have a straight. That means I get to ask both of you a question."

"Oh! Me first!" Lee exclaimed excitedly, raising his arm high over his head.

The redhead sighed before pausing a moment, trying to think of an appropriate question. "All right, Lee – tell me how much you love me."

Without any hesitation, Lee leaned over and planted a kiss on his boyfriend's lips, leaving them there momentarily before pulling back with a smile. "How's that for an answer?"

"Just perfect," Gaara replied, though he seemed distracted – by what, Naruto could not tell. When he turned to Sasuke once again, though, things became clearer, as Gaara immediately had a question prepared. "All right, Uchiha, your turn. Tell me – why _did_ you run away that night?"

Naruto rose from his stool, his eyes narrowed. "Gaara, that's out of line…"

"It wasn't the sex, if that's what you're wondering," Sasuke responded with what almost looked like a smirk. "Naruto was great – that was the problem. It's something I'd been struggling with for a while. I was in love with him, but I couldn't get past my fear of losing what I had. I needed to clear my head for a bit – that's why I left."

"That's interesting," Gaara continued, setting his cards to the side. "Because when you woke up in the hospital room, you seemed to be dealing with that issue still. Or did you not tell Naruto that?"

_Tell me what?_

Lee tugged on his boyfriend's shirt, seeing the bitterness growing in Sasuke's eyes. "Gaara, maybe we should go…"

Naruto realized that he was the only one out of the loop. Lee was concerned by what was to come, while Gaara and Sasuke were exchanging cold stares. He placed a hand on Sasuke's shoulder, causing the Uchiha to turn towards him. Immediately, Sasuke's face softened as he saw the concern in the blond's eyes. "What's he talking about, Sasuke?"

"So you _haven't_ told him, have you? You couldn't tell him about your greatest fear, the thing that almost got you killed," Gaara said in an accusatory tone

Sasuke sighed – the words hurt more than he let on. "That's not true… I wanted to tell him, but I didn't want to worry him…"

"Then you haven't learned anything from what happened. You may be able to say that you love him, but it's all an act – you still can't make the leap to actually trust him," the redhead continued, growing increasingly hostile as he spoke.

"I do trust him!"

"No! You only think you do, but when was the last time you told him about your fears? What about your hopes and dreams? Do you really think that little project you did was enough to truly understand him? You think love is just telling the other person that you care about him, but it's not that simple, Uchiha! He doesn't even know about your fear that you're cursed, does he?"

_Cursed…?_

"Sasuke… just tell me what's going on," Naruto pleaded, holding his boyfriend's hand, which had gone cold.

The Uchiha was not about to give in, however. Clearly, Gaara had crossed the line – this was war. "So, I'm just a hypocrite, huh? Well, what about you, Gaara? Are you being completely honest with yourself? Or with Lee, for that matter?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Gaara replied defensively as he shifted uncomfortably in his stool.

"Is that so? Because I think you do. I think you know how you've been watching Naruto all night – you were practically drooling when he took his shirt off a few minutes ago," Sasuke continued venomously.

Gaara didn't say a word, though Naruto was quick to try and silence his boyfriend. "Sasuke! That's enough!"

"Face it, Gaara – you're still in love with him, aren't you? And it's tearing you up inside. That's why you were so angry with me in the hospital there – you didn't think I was worthy of Naruto's love. And you know what? I think you were right," Sasuke said, ignoring his boyfriend as he stared down the redhead like prey. "I wasn't worthy of Naruto's love, but that didn't matter. The fact is, love isn't logical like that. The same thing applies to you and Lee."

"You bastard..." Gaara muttered, his hand closing into a fist.

"He loves you with all his heart, Gaara, and nothing you do can change that. You realize that, don't you? But you can't return those feelings, because a part of you will always long for Naruto. _You_ aren't worthy of his love, but you get it anyway," Sasuke said almost sadistically, seeing the redhead's mounting anger. "We're a lot more alike than you'd like to admit, Gaara."

"SASUKE!" Naruto exclaimed, causing the other three teens to turn towards him in surprise. Of course, it shocked Naruto a bit how loud his voice had become, but it was the first time in a while that he had been this angry with his boyfriend, and he was determined to make that anger known. "Why are you doing this? What do you have to gain? Do you have to make Gaara feel like he's lost more than he already has? Don't you think he's suffering already?"

"I… I…"

"You know what, I don't care what your reasoning is," Naruto said, waving his hand before Sasuke could speak. "You honestly think we didn't know that about Gaara? I would be shocked if he could forget his feelings for me just like that. That would be like expecting Kakashi to forget about Obito – you told him yourself that wasn't possible! But it's supposed to be different with Gaara, because he's in love with _me?_ I'm disappointed in you, Sasuke. I never thought you could be so petty."

Still clearly angry, Naruto then set his sights on Gaara, who was looking smug at seeing the Uchiha scolded. "And as for you – what were you trying to do? Drive a wedge between me and Sasuke? I thought I made it clear that I was in love with him – and you have a boyfriend now! Just think what you've put Lee through with all of this! He's not even involved in this little rivalry of yours…"

Gritting his teeth, Naruto turned towards the stairs, where he paused only to wave to Lee, who looked stunned and confused. "Sorry about this, Lee. I'll see you later, all right?"

"Umm… yeah… okay," Lee responded with a slow nod.

With that, the blond hurried up the stairs and out of the house. As he rushed out into the cool, autumn night, he realized Sasuke wasn't following him. That was good, though – he needed time to clear his head. If the Uchiha even tried to show his face around Naruto at that moment, there was no telling what the blond would do.

And so it was that the four couples found themselves in place for the night ahead. Kakashi and Iruka were busy lighting the candles in the master bedroom. Temari was driving a naked Shikamaru through town to her house. Gaara and Lee were awkwardly saying their goodbyes to Sasuke, who, once again, was alone.

* * *

And, there you have it! The next chapter will take a closer look at each of the four couples mentioned, along with another little twist at the end. Yes, I am a sadistic jerk - Sasuke and I would get along just fine. What's going to happen with Sasuke and Naruto after this little fight? And what about Gaara and Lee, now that Gaara's lingering feelings for Naruto have been made known? All this and more will be revealed next time in _For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him!_


	48. Juniper and Lamplight

Sorry, you guys. This chapter was tough for me, but I got it up as quickly as I could. I'm still not 100% satisfied with it, but I think I'm as close as I'm going to get. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy it, and thanks as usual for reading and reviewing. Now, without further ado, on with the chapter!

* * *

48. Juniper and Lamplight

Sasuke Uchiha strolled down the streets of Konoha that night, his hands in the pockets of his blue jacket as he went. He was in no particular hurry – he knew exactly where he was going, and he knew he had plenty of time to get there. He wasn't sure _how _he knew where Naruto had gone after leaving the party so abruptly, but somehow he was certain of it. Call a sixth sense, call it lover's intuition, call it whatever – Sasuke just knew. If there was one place Naruto would go when he was upset, it was Ichiraku Ramen.

Of course, before Sasuke got there, he had to figure out what exactly he was going to say, which was one reason why he was moving at such a leisurely place that night. He couldn't say he was proud of what had happened at the party – in fact, even if Naruto _hadn't_ said anything, he would've felt incredibly guilty about it later on. The fact that he had ticked off his boyfriend only made things worse, though.

So why had he done it? Sasuke only wished he knew. Maybe he still held a grudge against Gaara for their little fight, not to mention the fact that he tried to steal Naruto away from him. That kind of history was enough to spoil _any_ friendship. But Sasuke knew there was more to it than that. Yes, it mattered that it was Gaara who said it, but it mattered more that Sasuke was… well… Sasuke.

Was it pride? Some sort of lingering Uchiha sense of self-worth that meant Sasuke couldn't just ignore Gaara when he was openly attacking him? Sasuke kicked a can out of his path and frowned.

No, that wasn't it.

The truth was, Sasuke knew all along why he hadn't been able to fight that urge to take down Gaara. It was because everything Gaara had said was spot on. Sasuke_ had_ been keeping things from Naruto, and it was because he was still afraid. He wanted to trust Naruto fully and completely, he wanted to share every single ideal of love with his sunshine blond, because that's how he felt about him. For him, Naruto was his savior – the person who rescued Sasuke from himself, the one who brought him out of his little funk of self-pity and back to reality. Contrary to what Ace of Base said, someone _had_ "dragged him up, to get into the light where he belonged."

But it still wasn't enough. He might not have had the paralyzing fear that had made him run away, but there were still some doubts lingering within him. What Gaara had said about being cursed… it was too true.

_I don't want him to get hurt because of me. _That's_ why I don't tell him everything. Because if he knew all of my concerns, if I told him every little thought that crossed my mind…_

Sasuke shook his head. If he did that, then Naruto would truly know Sasuke – he'd understand him completely. And, as soon as he did that, Naruto would be doomed. It was absolutely ridiculous, Sasuke told himself. Logically, there was no sense in thinking he was cursed. But then he thought about what happened to his parents, to Itachi, to O… they were all the people he trusted most, and they had all died, either literally or figuratively.

_Maybe this is just a final step for me. I've already dealt with the more rational fears… I just have to do something about this paranoia. Either that, or I'm even crazier than I thought…_

Turning the corner, Sasuke paused. There it was – that little ramen shop he had taken Naruto to just a few months before. It seemed like ages ago, now. He had brought him there because he felt guilty, and that had been the beginning of the end. The beginning of his relationship with Naruto, the beginning of understanding that little thing called love, the beginning of his new life, but also the end of his fear, the end of his loneliness, and the end of the old Sasuke. He took a deep breath.

_Well, here goes nothing._

Stepping towards the ramen stand, Sasuke brushed the sign out of his way and ducked as he stepped inside. There, he found only one patron sitting at the bar – a familiar teenager wearing an orange jacket with bright yellow hair.

"Mind if I sit down?" Sasuke asked standing beside his boyfriend – assuming he could still call Naruto that.

"Sure," Naruto mumbled, staring blankly at the bowl of noodles before him. To Sasuke's surprise, it was the only dish on the counter – usually there were at least two stacks of empty bowls resting in front of the vulpine boy.

"Not hungry?" the Uchiha asked as he plopped down on an adjacent stool.

"What do you want?" the blond asked abruptly, causing Sasuke to momentarily freeze up. "You do want to eat, don't you?"

Sasuke was relieved – he had thought he'd angered Naruto just by showing up. "Umm… some shio ramen, I guess."

"Hey, old man. A bowl of shio ramen, please," Naruto said, indicating Sasuke with his free hand.

Nodding, the noodle chef proceeded to whip up a bowl while the two teens waited in silence. When the chef set the steaming bowl before Sasuke, the raven-haired youth only stared at it in silence, inhaling the odors, savoring them in an attempt to stir his appetite. As good as the food smelled, however, it only made Sasuke think of Naruto, and there was no way he could eat with that weighing on his mind.

Staring at the food before him, Sasuke sighed. 'I'm sorry."

"And I forgive you," Naruto replied flatly as he swirled his noodles with his chopsticks. "But I'm not the one you should be apologizing to."

"I know – I'm going to talk to Gaara as soon as I get the chance – but right now I need to come clean with you."

Naruto glanced up at his boyfriend, meeting his eyes for the first time. There was a hint of concern and, unless Sasuke was mistaken, fear in his expression. "What do you mean?"

"Everything Gaara said… it's all true," Sasuke confessed, setting down his chopsticks with a clack. "The truth is, I _have_ been hiding things from you… my feelings, I mean. When I first learned that O had died, for instance, I… I really thought I was cursed. That's what Gaara was talking about earlier. What he didn't say, though, was how he snapped me out of it."

"Gaara did?"

Sasuke nodded with a slight smile. "I said everyone would be better off without me, and ye just snapped. He told me that you all were so concerned for my safety because I was important to them – that O sacrificed himself for me so I could truly be happy. It made me feel, well… blessed."

Naruto rolled his eyes exaggeratedly. "Drop this sappy stuff, Sasuke. It doesn't suit you."

"I know… I mean it, though. Despite all that happened, I still have my friends, a family… he made me realize that it's not so much what I've lost that's important, but more what I've gained. But still…" Sasuke said, his hands starting to tremble. "I have those dreams every so often – dreams where I'm all alone again. They're not as frequent now, but when I do have them… it terrifies me. I think about what happened to Kakashi and Obito. They were so happy, and then it was taken away in a split second. You could be with me one day, and the next…"

Sasuke's eyes went misty, the bowl of ramen appearing fuzzy as the tears welled up. He hated to show his weakness like that, but at the same time it was a relief to make his feelings known.

"Did I ever tell you how I spent that night while you were in the hospital?" Naruto asked enigmatically. "I was waiting outside your room for hours, praying for some news. After a while, I didn't even care whether it was good or bad – any news was better than being left in the dark. My mind kept jumping to the worst possible conclusions… that you were going to die in there, and I would be left with endless questions. I thought it was my fault you had left… I was afraid I'd never know what made you leave in the first place. It made me want to throw up, Sasuke, that's how bad it felt."

"What are you saying?"

"We were afraid of the same thing, Sasuke. Being alone, losing the people we love… that's part of life. It's one of those things we have no control over… not even me," Naruto admitted, much to Sasuke's surprise. "I know I promised I'd never leave you alone again on the bridge that day, and I meant it. I'll do everything in my power to be with you forever. We'll be there for each other – that's what being in love is, right?"

Sasuke bit his lower lip. "You're right, but… what if something_ does_ happen? I'm just so afraid of losing you, Naruto… that's why I acted the way I did back there. When Gaara pointed out those fears, I felt like I had to do everything I could to silence him – even though it meant resorting to such low blows."

"I don't really know what to tell you, Sasuke. If something happens and we can't be together – whether temporarily or not – we'll just have to move on. I'm not saying it'll be easy, but love isn't _supposed_ to be easy. Look at Kakashi… it took him years to get past Obito, and when he did, it was because he had his friends to help him along," Naruto said, before placing a hand to his chin. "That really shouldn't matter, though. We shouldn't be thinking about what to do if we can't be together. You make it sound like we're buying a life insurance policy. We have to live for today! It's like those poems we read in Kakashi's class… the ones on 'crappy dime.'"

"Carpe diem," Sasuke corrected with an amused smirk.

"Whatever! The point is, Sasuke, there's nothing we can do about the future. All we can do is enjoy each other while we can! It doesn't matter if that's for another seven months or seventy years, as long as we make the most of it, right?"

"I know, I know, I know," Sasuke said, resting his head on his hand in frustration. "I've told myself that time and again, and I've heard others saying it. Rationally, I know that. But this isn't a rational kind of fear… this is something I've been living with ever since my parents died. I can't get rid of it just like that."

Naruto grasped the Uchiha's hand firmly, forcing eye contact. "Sasuke, I don't expect you to get rid of that fear right away. I just thought it would help to talk."

Sasuke rubbed his arm with one hand, a smile creasing his lips. "It did. At least a little bit. So… did you really mean what you said about fearing the same thing?"

"That nightmare you had? I had the same thing not too long ago. I was reliving that night when my parents died… Kyuubi had just killed mom and was coming to finish me off next. Then you showed up with that katana of yours and stopped him," Naruto said, blushing at his story. "I know, it's a bit silly, but I felt that same fear of being alone… the vulnerability. The thing is, as soon as you arrived, it changed completely. Suddenly, it was like everything was okay."

_So he had the same kind of dream, huh? That's a little eerie… but comforting, I guess._

"You never told me about that dream," the Uchiha said after a moment, more as an observation than anything else.

"Well… to tell you the truth, I was a little embarrassed about it. I didn't want you to think that you were my knight in shining armor or something…"

"You mean I'm not?" Sasuke challenged with a playful grin.

"I'd say we're both knights who happen to be totally into each other, but I see your point. It was a stupid reason to keep it from you."

"Then we're both guilty."

"Exactly," Naruto said before glancing back down at his ramen. "You know, I'm not really hungry anymore."

"Me neither," Sasuke concluded, shoving the bowl forward. "What do you say we go back to my place? We can tell each other all about our little secrets, like how I used to be afraid of clowns."

"Used to be?"

"Well… more than I am now."

"Sounds like a deal. You're paying for the food, though."

Pulling out a few bills from his wallet, Sasuke slapped them on the table and turned to leave, with Naruto at his side. The whole way home they talked about their dreams, their fears, and all their other seemingly innocent secrets – and never once did Sasuke worry about losing that happiness he'd found.

XXXXX

"No way."

"What's the big deal? Come on, just do it."

"There's no way I'm going in there like this, Temari! What if Kankuro's there?"

"You don't have anything he's never seen before. At least I hope not…"

"That's not the point! Look, I rode all the way here like this – isn't that good enough?"

"Not even close, Shika. Not even close."

Shikamaru stared at his girlfriend in disbelief. They were sitting in her cherry red car outside of the Subakuno residence. He was still in his birthday suit, with only his hands to provide him with any decency, while Temari stared at him with a grin practically glued to her face. She was enjoying the lazy genius's humiliation far too much – though Shikamaru hated to admit that he was enjoying it a bit himself. There was a rush to being forced to bend to her will, even if it resulted in some embarrassing situations.

_Em-bare-ass-ing is more like it…_

Still, as strangely fun as driving through town had been, Shikamaru had his limits. He did not want to go inside Temari's house as he was – he could just think of far too many things that could go wrong. Most of those ideas involved Kankuro attacking him in painful ways in very sensitive areas, and Shikamaru preferred to avoid such a confrontation if at all possible.

Yes, despite the Nara's objections, Temari still held his clothes hostage. He glowered at her. "Look, Temari – there's no way in hell I'm going in there like this. Now give me back my clothes."

"You knew the rules before we played, Shika. I can do whatever I want with your clothes now – if you want them back, you'll have to do as I say. Now, are you coming inside, or would you rather walk back like that? It's awfully chilly out tonight…"

_Yeah, as if the cold air is my biggest concern…_

Shikamaru fidgeted uncomfortably – Temari had a point. What choice did he really have? "All right, all right… you can be so troublesome sometimes…"

Satisfied, Temari bundled up the Nara's clothes under her arm and unlocked the car. After she popped the door open, the interior lights clicked on, leaving Shikamaru feeling quite vulnerable and exposed. Hurriedly, he stepped out of the car and shut the door, causing the light to go out in a flash. Leaning back against the car, Shikamaru let out a surprised yelp as his bare backside brushed up against the cold metal.

"Better keep quite, Shika – don't want to wake the neighbors," Temari said as she fumbled with her keys. Holding up the remote, she examined it in mock confusion. "Hmm… now which button locks it again?"

His eyes widening, Shikamaru watched in horror as Temari's thumb hovered over a red button, a wicked grin crossing her features. "Temari! Don't!"

Ignoring her boyfriend's pleas, Temari pressed the button, causing the car alarm to blare and the lights to flicker on and off. Immediately, Shikamaru rushed over to the bushes near the house and hid as the irritated neighbors began to file outside to see what was causing all the commotion. Meanwhile, Temari doubled over with laughter at the sight of the naked Nara fleeing from view.

"Oh, are you gonna be shy now?" she taunted as she approached the bushes.

"Look, having you see me is one thing – I don't want to put on a show for the whole neighborhood!" Shikamaru whispered as he poked his head through the leaves. "Now would you shut it off?"

Rolling her eyes, Temari pressed another button on her remote, silencing the alarm. "You're just lucky I decided not to swing by McDonalds on the way home. I'm sure the girls at the drive-through would've _loved_ that."

Hesitantly stepped out of the bushes, Shikamaru brushed a few leaves from his butt as he sighed. "You just want to make this as painful for me as possible, don't you?"

"What? Because I want to show off your sexy body?" Temari asked, running a finger down her boyfriend's bare torso. "Your flat stomach… your toned chest with those cute little nipples… not to mention that ass…"

Shikamaru reddened visibly, his mouth suddenly dry as Temari explored his features. When she playfully squeezed his butt, however, the lazy genius snapped back to reality and stood up straight with his hands cupping his groin. "Umm… can we go inside? It's getting cold out here."

"Well, since you asked so nicely," Temari said, grabbing Shikamaru's wrist. "Besides, as much as I want to show you off, it's nice to have you all to myself, too."

Stepping onto the front porch, Shikamaru waited behind a white column, his legs shaking nervously. He wasn't sure why – maybe it was just the fact that he was outside in the buff – but something about this night was making him both extremely excited and equally anxious. It was like waiting for Temari outside the theater all over again, only this time he didn't have a cigarette to calm his nerves.

_Women… I'll never understand them. Maybe that's what's so exciting about them? Is that why Dad fell for Mom – because she was a mystery?_

The door squeaked as Temari pushed it open to reveal a darkened house. Shikamaru sighed in relief – that meant Kankuro wasn't there. He also realized, of course, that this probably meant he wouldn't be getting his clothes back any time soon. Following Temari inside, he felt oddly only more nervous as he tried to figure out just what she had planned for him.

"So… can I have my clothes back now?" he asked, though he knew perfectly well what the answer would be.

"Of course not, silly. The fun's just getting started," Temari said as she tossed the bundle of clothes off into the corner of the stairwell. She held up a finger as she headed upstairs. "Now, wait right there – I'll be back in a second."

_Yikes… that can't be good…_

Shuffling his feet nervously, Shikamaru glanced down at himself, thinking about what his girlfriend had been saying a few minutes before. She liked to his body? Really? He had never really considered it before, but that was most likely because he never took the time to study himself in the mirror. As he stood in the entryway, staring down at his naked body, however, he realized he was by no means in bad shape. He was lean, he supposed – flat stomach, visible pecs, thin legs. If anything he was _too_ thin.

Removing his hands from his groin, Shikamaru flexed his bicep and examined the muscle. He didn't think it was very impressive, but again, it wasn't bad. If he started hitting the gym after school, he could probably see some improvement in only a few months.

"Oh, look at you! Are you posing for me now?" Temari asked as she emerged from upstairs, stifling a giggle as Shikamaru flexed at the base of the stairs. Shikamaru couldn't help but notice as her eyes wandered further south, at which point he realized he'd left himself completely exposed.

_Oh well… it's not like she hasn't seen it before…_

"Would you like me to?" Shikamaru replied, raising an eyebrow flirtatiously.

"Of course – but I have something else planned," Temari answered as she held out a black bowtie. "Here, put this on."

"A bowtie?" the Nara asked, taking the accessory in confusion. "What for?"

"You're going to be my nude butler, obviously. Now, hurry up and put it on – we have so much to do!"

"You're joking right?"

Temari laughed, patting her boyfriend's cheek. "I'm dead serious, Shika. I've wanted to do this for a long time."

Gulping, Shikamaru attempted to tie the bow, but realized he didn't have any idea on how to put the damned thing on. Seeing his frustration, Temari stepped towards him and grabbed the tie, deciding it would be faster to fasten it herself. Meanwhile, Shikamaru only stared at his girlfriend, his heart pounding as she pressed up against his naked skin.

_Baseball… cold showers… Kankuro walking in on us…_

"There we go, Shika. All set," Temari said as she stepped away. Glancing down at the Nara's groin again, she smiled broadly. "Looks like you're ready to go, too, aren't you?"

"Umm… sorry about that…"

"Oh, no need to apologize. I'll take it as a compliment. Now, let me get you a tray…" Dragging her boy toy by the arm, Temari entered the kitchen, where she grabbed a serving tray from one of the cupboards. "Now, take this and bring me a drink."

"What do you want?" Shikamaru asked, holding the tray in front of him modestly.

"I don't know – surprise me," the blonde responded as she disappeared around the corner into the living room.

_Yes, dear…_

Grumbling, Shikamaru searched through the cupboards, opening them one by one until he found a shelf full of glasses. Placing it under the faucet, he filled it with water and set it on the tray, which he then balanced precariously in one hand as he stepped out of the white, tiled kitchen and into the carpeted living room, where he found Temari busy lighting candles.

"Umm… your drink?" he offered, extending the tray to his girlfriend.

"Thank you, Shika," she responded, taking the drink. "Now, come closer – I have something to tell you."

"Okay?" the Nara said, leaning in towards the blonde. He only moved a few inches, however, before her hands suddenly entwined behind his head and pulled him downward, causing him to collapse on top of her. "What the he–"

Temari silenced the teen immediately with a kiss, effectively ending his protests. For a moment, Shikamaru watched as the candlelight flickered in Temari's eyes, but he soon closed his eyes and became absorbed in the kiss. It was different, but pleasant, being the only one naked in this particular situation. Sure, they'd had sex before, but somehow this was even more exciting. It was about her pleasure – living out her fantasy, in a way, and the knowledge that she was enjoying every second of it made Shikamaru's heart race.

_I actually turn her on… I have to admit, that's a pretty nice feeling…_

With her hands running down his back, feeling his muscles as they traveled down to his butt, Shikamaru's pride swelled further, as did something else further south. Suddenly, Temari backed out of the kiss, and Shikamaru stared at her with a sinking feeling in his gut.

_Shit, what did I do wrong?_

"I hope you know you're not getting your clothes back till morning."

Shikamaru smiled and leaned in for another kiss. "I can live with that."

They continued to make out on the couch for a time – Shikamaru lost track somewhere along the way. It hadn't felt like ten minutes, but for all he knew it had been an hour of just the two of them being together. Despite the cool November air outside, the body heat was more than enough to keep Shikamaru warm. After a while, they simply lay on the couch, with Shikamaru resting his head on Temari's shoulder, while she wrapped her arms around his back, one by his neck, the other at his waist.

"How was that?" Shikamaru asked with a somewhat cocky, somewhat bashful smile.

"That was… nice," Temari responded with a satisfied sigh. "Shika… thanks for putting up with me tonight. I know I was pushing your buttons all night."

"It was my pleasure, though I'll admit I probably wouldn't have done this if you hadn't forced me into it," the Nara said with a blush. "I had fun, though."

"Good, because we're just getting started."

With that, Temari pulled Shikamaru back into a kiss, at which point they were both startled by the distinct squeak of the front door as it swung open. They froze.

XXXXX

Gaara felt physically ill. As he and Lee walked through the streets of Konoha, he tried to understand exactly what had happened at Sasuke's party. He hadn't even realized what he was saying until the words had already left his lips. Why had he felt the need to corner Sasuke like that? He thought he had moved on by now – he had Lee now. Sure, he still felt something for Naruto, but was that really enough for him to risk the love he'd found in Lee?

Apparently, it was. There had been something burning inside of him at the sight of Naruto and Sasuke together right then. Something about knowing they were together, that they were happy, that they were _intimate_ – it made Gaara sick. So he did the only thing that his irrational heart could think of – he tried to sabotage Sasuke's relationship with his beloved blond. If Gaara couldn't have him, then no one could. Love for Naruto had momentarily blinded all of his other senses, and when Sasuke turned the conversation around on him, it all blew up in his face.

Now, as they walked past restaurants, cafés, and other little shops, Gaara watched Lee, his heart practically splitting apart with regret. Lee had put on a good act – he had not once broken his slight, almost determined smile, and he had never once said a word about the doubts Sasuke had placed in his mind.

The problem, though, was that Gaara could easily see straight through this façade. Though his smile was nearly perfect, the redhead could tell that the happiness had drained from Lee's eyes – that usual glimmer had faded, making him almost look half-dead. He also hadn't spoken a word about _anything_, leading Gaara to believe that he was still trying to find the right way to express his feelings. Most painful of all, however, was the fact that Lee refused to make eye contact with Gaara whatsoever. From the moment they left Sasuke's house, Lee had faced forward, his eyes turned downward dejectedly.

_Naruto was right… Lee's the real victim in all this. How could I possibly do that to him, after all he's been through for me? He stayed with me even after what happened with Dad… he's shown me nothing but love, and I just threw it back in his face for someone who's already taken…_

Crushed, Gaara suddenly felt his legs start to give out, causing him to collapse in the middle of the sidewalk. Immediately, Lee abandoned his misery and rushed over to the redhead in concern, getting down on one knee to help him up.

"Gaara! Are you okay?" Lee asked as he propped Gaara's head up in his lap. "Should I call someone?"

"No, no… I'm fine," Gaara responded weakly as he sat up and buried his face in his hands.

"No, you're not – tell me what's wrong," the mop-topped teen demanded, setting his feet over the curb before sidling up to Gaara.

And there it was – that same blind devotion that had been haunting Gaara all this time. Nothing Gaara ever did could shake those feelings. Lee loved him – this was a fact, like how two and two equaled four, or how there were 365 days in a year, or how Kanye West's ego was bigger than the sun.

_It's how I feel about Naruto… that idiotic sort of feeling that means I'd give anything for him…_

"I'm so sorry, Lee," Gaara choked out as he bit his lip in an attempt to stifle his tears. He had no right to cry right now. "Everything he said… it's all true. I still love Naruto. I don't want to! I've tried – I've tried so fucking hard, but, dammit, I just can't get over him. You've been so good to me… better than I deserve… but I can't do it…"

"Then I guess I'll just have to try harder," Lee replied, throwing an arm over Gaara's shoulder. "As much as you may love him, I swear I'll love you ten times more."

"No! I can't let you do that. It's not fair for me to take advantage of you like that. I can't be with you when I know I still have feelings for someone else. You deserve someone better."

Up above them, the traffic light changed from green to red, casting a faint glow on the pair. Lee looked positively angry, and when Gaara saw this, he realized he'd never actually seen the teen _mad_ before. "I don't _want_ someone else! I love _you_, Gaara. I'm not going to say I'm happy that you're still in love with Naruto, but I understand. These things take time, and you'll probably have feelings for him for the rest of your life. The guy helped you realize there was something good in life… he's important to you. Aren't I important to you, too?"

"Of course you are! I love you too, Lee… really, I do. But I love him too…"

"Gaara!" Lee snapped, causing the redhead to go silent. "I told you I don't care about that. You love me, right? As long as that's the case, I don't care if you still have feelings for Naruto. If you loved _only_ him, then that'd be another matter. As long as we love each other, then I have no reason to be jealous. I'll make you forget him in time."

Gaara stared at the mop-topped teen in astonishment. How could he possibly say that, even knowing what he did now? "What makes you so sure?"

"Because you made me forget Sakura. I used to think she was the one – I asked her time and again to be my girlfriend. Then I met you… and after I went to your house that day, I knew I was wrong. I still have feelings for her, I guess, but she's not right for me," Lee said as he rose from the curb, dusting off the back of his green Speedo. "I'll see to it that you wonder why you ever fell for Naruto in the first place."

Staring up at his boyfriend, who was now extending a hand to the redhead, Gaara felt something stir inside him. Something warm. Lee really was hopelessly devoted to him, and to be the recipient of that much love… it felt good. Despite his guilt and his general disgust with himself, Gaara found himself smiling. He grabbed Lee's hand and rose to his feet, where he planted a kiss on the teen's lips. It was short and sweet, but as the light overhead switched back to green, he realized that Lee was right – Gaara could find happiness without Naruto.

"Let's go home. You can spend the night in my room."

Lee blushed at the sight of Gaara's seductive smirk. "Umm… sounds good."

With that, the duo crossed the street and continued through town in continued silence. Unlike before, though, they were not searching for the right words to voice their thoughts – there simply was nothing left to say. They were together, and they were in love – that was all that mattered.

After only a few more minutes, they arrived outside the Subakuno residence, where Gaara spied Temari's cherry red car parked in the driveway. More importantly, he could see the faint light of a few candles glowing in the living room window.

"Brace yourself, Lee."

"For what?" the teen asked, tilting his head in confusion.

"You'll see," Gaara replied before pushing open the front door.

As they stepped inside, Gaara and Lee could hear some hurried shuffling coming from the living room couch. Turning the corner, they found Temari laying casually across the couch, with a clearly naked Shikamaru sitting with a throw pillow held over his crotch, looking quite mortified. Lee stifled a laugh, while Gaara looked completely unfazed.

"Having fun?" Gaara asked, leaning against the doorway.

"Well, we _were_," Temari replied irritably. "Why'd you guys leave the party so soon?"

"There was an incident – I'm sure you'll hear all about it later," Gaara responded as he latched onto Lee's arm and started up the stairs. "I'll leave you two lovebirds alone, then – we'll be upstairs. See you in the morning."

"Night, lil' bro," Temari said before pulling a bewildered Shikamaru towards her.

Continuing upstairs to his bedroom, Gaara shook his head in amusement. Only in their family could they be so completely nonchalant about sex. I guess being dysfunctional had its good points.

Turning the corner into his room, the redhead paused. Though they had cleaned the room and replaced the carpet since the incident, it still seemed strange, taking Lee there. It had been only been a month, after all – a month since his father died, a month since he last had brought Lee to that room. Still, he wanted this.

Squeezing his boyfriend's hand, Lee seemed to read Gaara's mind. "Are you all right?"

"Yeah… I just needed a second there," the redhead said as he stepped inside and crawled onto the bed. He looked around his room, studying it for the first time in a while. The new beige carpeting, the red paintjob, the poster for _Dexter _– it was Gaara's space. He couldn't let his father's memory haunt it forever.

As he turned his attention back to Lee, his eyes paused for a moment on the tattered, old bear in the corner. He smiled, remembering when Lee had given it to him at the hospital. Finally, his eyes settled on the mop-topped teen, who was standing awkwardly in the doorway in his Robin costume. Gaara burst out laughing.

"All right, first off – that's going to have to go."

"This?" Lee asked, glancing down at his outfit. "But it's all I have."

"I know," Gaara replied, stepping towards his boyfriend. He slowly began to undo the buttons. "I'm going to show you just how much I love you."

His cheeks burning crimson, Lee had no chance to respond as his lips locked with Gaara. Together, they tumbled to the bed, and for the next hour they became lost in each other, surrounded by a thick fog of lust, desire, and love.

XXXXX

Sweaty and exhausted, Kakashi rolled off to the side of the bed and stared up at the scarlet ceiling. Beside him, an equally drained Iruka breathed heavily, his face red with pleasure. Together, they basked in their afterglow for a time, enjoying each other's company as their musk mixed with Iruka's scented candles.

"That… that was…" Iruka began, wiping some of his sticking hair from his brow.

"Yeah… you were too…" Kakashi agreed, his bare torso exposed over the edge of the luxurious sheets.

Rolling over, Iruka draped an arm over the other man's body a nuzzled against his chest. "You think the boys are okay? They seemed to be awfully loud down there for a while there."

"I'm sure they're fine. Whatever it is, they'll work it out," the teacher said reassuringly, running his hand through Iruka's hair.

"I hope you're right," the brunet said, gazing into his lover's eyes. "I really want them to be together – Naruto and Sasuke, that is."

"Really?" Kakashi asked in mild astonishment. "I thought the idea would bother you."

"Well, it's not exactly what I expected. I didn't even know my son was gay, let alone that he was dating your son-to-be. Still… I can tell they really care about each other. The way Naruto waited all night for Sasuke in the hospital… they have something special – something I hope we can have one day."

"Whose to say we don't?" Kakashi asked, glancing down at the other man.

"Maybe we do – I guess I can just see it so easily in those two. They were really meant for each other, and it would be wrong for me to stand in their way just because _we're_ in love."

"So they have your blessing?"

"I guess you could say that, yes."

"I'll be sure to tell them," Kakashi concluded with a chuckle before rolling back on top of Iruka. "Now, about us. I think you need a bit convincing on how much I love you."

"Round two?" Iruka asked as he lay back on the pillow.

"With many more to come," Kakashi replied before planting his lips on the brunet. Their eyes closed, they tumbled in the sheets, oblivious to what was going on just on the other side of town, at the Konoha County Jail

XXXXX

"Chief Jiraiya!"

Sitting at his desk scribbling a few notes in his latest novel, Jiraiya looked up irritably. "Yeah, what is it?"

"It's Itachi Uchiha – he's requested to see you. He says he has something to tell you," a young officer replied with an unnecessary salute.

Jiraiya clamped his book shut with a sigh. "All right – let's see what he has to say this time."

Strolling down the hallway, Jiraiya entered an interrogation room. Itachi had been held in a cell at the jail ever since his arrest a month before. During that time, he had not spoken a word to the police. He remained silent and stolid throughout their interrogations, and they were unwilling to go to trial until they could get a statement from him. As Jiraiya entered the room, however, and saw Itachi sitting beneath the white lights, he realized that they might finally get his story.

"All right, Itachi – you said you wanted to see me?" Jiraiya asked, taking a seat on the opposite side of the table. "So, what is it? Are you ready to tell me your side of the story?"

Itachi hesitated a moment, staring at a blank spot on the table with his dead eyes. He looked defeated, sitting there in his blue prison uniform. Finally, his mouth opened. "I did it."

Jiraiya's eyes widened. He checked to make sure his tape recorder was on. "I'm sorry? What was that?"

"I did it – I murdered my parents. I confess."

* * *

Dun-dun-dunnnn! Itachi confesses. Gaara confesses. Sasuke confesses. Iruka confesses... sort of. Shikamaru gets naked for Temari - not quite a confession, but whatever. What's going to happen now? Will Gaara and Sasuke patch things up any time soon? How will Sasuke react when he hears about Itachi? And is Kiba ever going to find a special someone? Find out next time in _For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him!_


	49. Hazy Shade of Winter

Good day, dear readers! Here's a new chapter for you all. This one focuses a bit more on a character we haven't seen too much of lately, so it was fun and different to write. Hopefully you'll all enjoy it as well! Anyway, thanks for reading and reviewing, now on with the chapter!

* * *

49. Hazy Shade of Winter

Kiba Inuzuka awoke that Monday morning to the incessant beeping of his alarm. For a minute or so he chose to ignore the sound, opting instead to turn over onto his belly and try to muffle the sound with his pillow. Soon, though, the pressure of Akamaru pouncing onto his back forced him to give up any illusions of going back to sleep, at which point he haphazardly slapped at the alarm clock until the sound was silenced. Satisfied, Akamaru yipped once and trotted over to his master's face, where he licked Kiba's face happily.

"All right, all right, I'm up," Kiba groaned before scratching the puppy's head. "I'll get you breakfast in a minute, okay?"

Yipping again, Akamaru hopped off the bed and raced out of the room for the kitchen while Kiba groggily kicked off his sheets. He sighed.

_Alone again… naturally…_

Swinging his legs over the side of his bed, Kiba ran a hand down his face. Ever since their housewarming party for Sasuke, Naruto had spent every night at the Uchiha's house, leaving Kiba on his own with Akamaru. Sure, he was happy for Naruto – he wanted nothing more than to see his best friend find true love. The problem was, of course, that seeing his roommate in such a satisfying relationship only reminded Kiba of his single status.

Standing up, Kiba stretched and faced his mirror on the opposite wall. With the exception of his mild case of bed head, the Inuzuka thought he looked pretty good, posing in his black briefs. He flexed his biceps and admired his physique for a moment, having worked hard on it under Gai's tutelage.

_Now, why can't I get any girls with muscles like these? Sasuke practically needs bodyguards to keep the girls away from him, and he's scrawny as a twig. And gay! What's the deal?_

The dog boy shook his head. Maybe he just wasn't meant to find love yet. Scratching his bare midriff, the depressed teen strolled out of his room and into the kitchen, where Akamaru was waiting over his dog dish. He barked irritably, causing Kiba to roll his eyes.

"Hold your horses, boy. I'm getting it," Kiba said, picking up a large bag of dog chow. He poured some of the kibble into the bowl, at which point Akamaru began to stuff his face, paying no heed to his master. Waving a hand dismissively, Kiba left the dog and started towards the bathroom, saying, "You're _welcome._"

Once in the bathroom, Kiba unceremoniously slipped off his underwear and turned on the shower. After waiting a moment for the water to warm up, he stepped inside and closed the curtain, allowing the steam to build up within. With the hot water running off his shoulders and rolling down his lean back to his bubble butt, Kiba allowed his mind to wander.

Were there even any girls he was interested in? Sure, there were some hotties around, but so many of them just had the most repulsive personalities. Ino, for example – yeah, she was gorgeous, but Kiba was pretty sure he'd shoot himself if he somehow wound up with her. Same went with Sakura, though Sasuke seemed to think she'd turned over a new leaf. Who else was there? Tenten? If Ino and Sakura had bad personalities, then Tenten's problem was that she had no personality to speak of. That, and she was already dating Neji, and Kiba really didn't want to get on Mr. White-Eyes' bad side.

_There really aren't a ton of girls I'd even consider. Too many of them only have eyes for Sasuke, and the ones that don't are already taken…_

Grumbling in frustration, Kiba picked up a bottle of shampoo and squirted out a handful of liquid. He then began to rub it into his hair as he tried to sort out his dilemma. He felt as though he was missing something. There was always Temari, he supposed, but he _knew_ she was taken, and there was no way he was going to try to steal her from Shikamaru. There were some lines you just didn't cross.

_Maybe that girl who works at Ichiraku? She's pretty cute… but she's in college. There's no way she's going to date a guy who's still in high school._

As he moved on to lathering up his body, Kiba frowned. Surely there was _someone_ who was available: someone who was right for him – someone cute, but who didn't have an obnoxious personality,

_Maybe even someone soft-spoken…_

Suddenly, Kiba realized he had been showering off for well over twenty minutes. Shutting off the water abruptly, Kiba hurried out of the shower and toweled off. He then threw open the door and streaked down the hall to his room, where he hurriedly threw on some clothes – he didn't particularly care what. Black briefs, blue jeans, black t-shirt, a jacket – once he was satisfied, he slung his backpack over his shoulder and slipped on his shoes as he hopped down the hallway past a very bemused Akamaru.

"Bye, Akamaru! Be good while I'm gone!" Kiba called, eliciting a bark from the dog as he shut the door.

_Damn… how could I let myself get all distracted like that? Now I'm gonna be late. I'll have to hurry!_

After sprinting down the stairs of the apartment complex, Kiba began to run alongside the road towards school, keeping an eye on traffic. Once the coast was clear, he darted across the street and continued on his way, weaving through the crowd of people on their morning commute as he went. In only ten minutes he reached the school just as the bell rang.

_Shit, shit, shit…_

Rushing inside, Kiba found that the hallways were mostly empty, save for a few kids who were as late as he was. Knowing that his class was only a short distance away, Kiba turned on the afterburners and hurtled down the corridor, passing numerous stunned students and one very angry teacher, who shook her fist at the dog boy as he whizzed on by. It was only after turning the corner, however, that Kiba ran into trouble – that trouble being a girl with dark blue hair, pale eyes, and fair skin, who let out a weak cry as the Inuzuka barreled into her.

"Sorry!" Kiba said, having fallen to the floor. He dusted himself off as he rose to his feet before helping the girl up as well. "Are you all right?"

"Umm… y-yes. S-sorry…"

"Well, if you're okay, I have to get going. Sorry again!" Kiba called out before darting back down the hallway to his class.

Of course, in the end, Kiba's efforts to make it to class on time were for nothing. He was still late, and he was given detention for his consistent tardiness. Bitter, he ignored everything Kurenai said throughout the class, opting instead to write spiteful haiku on his notebook.

_"Ebisu's a jerk_

_I hate him with all my hate_

_I like burritos"_

The next class passed in a similar fashion, albeit without the haiku. Instead, Kiba struggled to keep his head up as Asuma rambled on about averages, and how the mode was the single least useful statistic ever, yet they still had to use it for whatever reason and…

"Kiba! Were you listening to a word I just said?" Asuma asked, tossing an eraser at the dog boy's head.

"Umm… sort of?" Kiba responded honestly.

Asuma ran a hand through his hair and sighed. "Well, just pay attention, all right? This stuff's going to be on the exam next month, so take good notes."

Grumbling, Kiba glanced back down at his notebook and scribbled out Ebisu's name in his haiku, replacing it with Asuma's. He tried his best to remain vigilant throughout the rest of the period, but he just couldn't get himself to care. Instead, his mind for whatever reason jumped back to the girl he'd bumped into that morning. Who was she? Something about her seemed familiar, but he couldn't think of a name.

When the bell rang, Kiba's mind jumped back to the present as he eagerly threw his backpack over his shoulder and darted out the door. Sure, statistics were boring as hell, but at least he had one class to look forward to, and that was gym with Gai. They were going to play basketball that day, and Kiba was anxious to kick some major butt.

Upon arriving at the locker room, Kiba quickly found his little cube and got dressed. It was then that the other students began to file inside, among them a certain blond, who the Inuzuka greeted enthusiastically.

"There you are! Ready for some b-ball, Naruto?" he asked, throwing an arm over his roommate's shoulder.

Glancing up with distracted eyes, Naruto hesitated a moment, as if he hadn't heard the question, before responding, "Oh, yeah. You bet."

"Oh crap, did the two of you have _another_ fight or something?" Kiba asked, seeing that something was clearly troubling the vulpine boy.

"Not exactly… you see, we just heard some news this morning," Naruto said as he began to change at his own locker. "On Saturday, Itachi confessed to killing their parents. He admitted everything."

"Didn't we already know that?" the Inuzuka inquired, scratching his head in confusion.

"Well, we knew there was a lot of evidence against him. A couple of witnesses, that journal they found, motive… still, I think Sasuke wanted to believe that it was all a misunderstanding – that Itachi had been set up or something." Naruto shook his head before slipping on his gym shirt. "That's why he's not here today – he wanted to go and hear it from Itachi himself. I'm worried about him, that's all."

Though Kiba certainly sympathized with his roommate, he also felt a hint of bitterness at hearing this story. After all, this was exactly the kind of fulfilling relationship that he'd been thinking about all morning – the relationship that was missing in his life. Taking a page out of Naruto's book, Kiba decided to mask these conflicting feelings with a forced smile.

"Well, just try to forget about it and focus on the game, all right? There's nothing you can do about it now, so there's no sense in worrying."

Naruto's eyes brightened a bit at this, his lips curling upward. "Sure – let's show them who's boss!"

Once the blond was dressed, he and Kiba headed out to the gymnasium, where they gathered around an exuberant Gai, who cradled a basketball under his arm. They waited a few minutes for the rest of the class to get dressed, at which point the instructor blew his whistle for an unnecessarily prolonged period of time.

"All right! As you all know, today you will be playing basketball. It is a sport that truly tests the limits of youth, because you are constantly moving from one end of the court to the next, chasing the ball, guarding the ball, _owning_ the ball. The teams will be as follows: those on Neji's side of the room will be Team A. Those on Kiba's side of the room will be Team B. Any questions?" Gai asked, indicating both sides with a wave of his arm.

"No, sir!" the class shouted in unison.

"Excellent! Then go out and play, and let your youth shine!"

After a blow of Gai's whistle, the teams split up to their respective sides, with Kiba and Neji facing each other at center court. They each shot the other a cocky smirk as Gai tossed the basketball into the air, signaling the start of the game. To Kiba's chagrin, Neji was able to jump a smidgeon higher and slap the ball to his side, giving them the offensive.

Fortunately for Kiba and the rest of his team, they had a strong defense that was able to counter the opposing team's relatively feeble offense. From what Kiba could tell, only Neji really had any skill on their team – the other players were either completely uninterested in the game, like Ino and Shino, or were simply not much good at the game, like the freshman Konohamaru. Thus, when Ino was given the ball, she simply tossed the ball in the general direction of the hoop and missed by a wide margin.

When Kiba retrieved the ball and began Team B's offensive, though, it was a much different story. Dribbling down the court, Kiba found his track team training paying off, as he was easily able to weave between the opponents, with one exception: Neji. The Hyuuga's raw talent was enough to match Kiba's hard work, and the white-eyed teen stuck to Kiba like glue all the way down the court. When the time came for him to take a shot, the Inuzuka went for a lay-up, leaping just beyond Neji's reach to roll the ball into the basket.

"That's two, Hyuuga," Kiba replied, flashing a peace sign and a grin as he hurried back down the court.

The game continued in this pattern for a while, with Team A struggling to earn points save for those earned by Neji, and Team B racking up points with relative ease. After a half hour, the score was 42 – 20, and Kiba's ego was only growing larger with every point he earned.

Dribbling down the court after having blocked yet another shot, Kiba was on top of the world. He didn't even hear when one of his teammates asked for him to pass the ball, but instead went for a three-point shot, sending the ball flying over Neji's head. With a grin, he watched as it went in before pumping a fist in the air.

"Swish! Take that, Hyuuga!"

Neji glared at the Inuzuka before taking possession of the ball again and dribbling down the court, sweat running down his face. There was not enough time for Team A to catch up – that much was clear – but Neji was determined to at least close the gap. When he went for a lay-up, however, Kiba was there to slap the ball away and knock the Hyuuga to the ground just as Gai blew his whistle.

"All right, that's game! Good show, everyone! Now hit the showers!"

Feeling quite proud of his performance, Kiba raced to the locker room with a spring in his step as the rest of his team followed closely behind. As for Team A, they trudged behind in defeat, with Neji taking up the rear, his eyes brimming with rage. Kiba himself remained completely unaware of this, however, as he sauntered over to his locker and proceeded to undress. He was sweaty and exhausted, but he'd won, and that was all that mattered.

"We~ are the champions, my friend~" he began to sing as he threw a towel over his shoulder and headed for the showers. "And we'll~ keep on _fight_in', till the end~"

Setting his towel on a hook outside the shower area, Kiba wandered into the tiled room and stepped under a showerhead, where he continued to sing as the water poured over him. His eyes closed, he was oblivious to the rest of the world for a moment, until he heard the sound of bare feet slapping against the floor. Turning around in surprise, he cracked open one eye to find Neji, along with a few other guys from both Teams A and B standing with their arms crossed. Kiba noted that they were all clothed, and they all looked _pissed_.

"Umm… hey, guys. What's up?" he asked as he shut off the water.

"You're quite the showoff, Inuzuka. Must be your fate to show _everything_," Neji said before snapping his fingers. "Get him."

As Neji's lackeys moved in, Kiba attempted to escape to the side, but ended up slipping on the wet tile instead. With a surprised cry, he collapsed into a heap on the floor, where his assailants seized his arms and legs. The next thing he knew, Kiba was being dragged out of the showers and towards the exit.

"Let me go, dammit!" Kiba barked as he struggled to break free.

His efforts were in vain, for soon Neji's followers had carried the dog boy to the locker room doors, which they kicked open before swinging Kiba back and forth.

"One… two… three!"

On the last count, the gang released Kiba's limbs, sending him tumbling out into the hallway. Though the impact had hurt more than he expected, Kiba was less concerned about any possible injuries from his little spill than he was about getting back inside the locker room as soon as possible.

Rushing up to the now-closed doors, he began to pound on the fogged-glass window, shouting, "Let me in, guys! Come on!"

Inside, Kiba could just make out the voice of Naruto over the din, telling the others to let the Inuzuka back inside. When the door remained tightly shut despite Kiba's attempts to force it open, it became clear that neither Neji nor his cronies had any intention of letting him in any time soon. Taking a few steps back, Kiba crossed his arms over his bare chest and studied the door in frustrated bemusement.

_Well, that's just great. What the hell do I do now?"_

Suddenly, Kiba heard a slight 'eep' from off to the side. Turning his head in horror, he found the same girl with dark-blue hair from earlier that morning standing at the corner of the hallway. He blanched.

"Oh! I-I-I'm sorry! I didn't know…" the girl stuttered, her face turning a deep red as she tried to look away, though her eyes remained fixed on the dog boy in spite of her.

_Shit! Okay, okay… you're naked in front of a cute girl. Just stay calm… act natural so she doesn't think you're a doofus…_

Trying his best to look nonchalant with his hands at his side, Kiba soon recognized a key flaw with his plan: it was _impossible_ to look cool in this particular situation. After all, it wasn't like he could somehow pretend that he _meant_ to be standing outside the locker room without a stitch on him. Staring at the door, he began to sweat as he silently prayed for Neji to open the door.

_This is so humiliating… goddammit, Neji! Is she still there?_

Kiba glanced to the side, where he found the girl still apparently paralyzed by the sight. She was standing sideways, though her head remained fixed in his direction. Staring forward again, Kiba's eyes went wide.

_Yes, yes she is. Okay… what the hell do I do here? Should I say something? Maybe she'll just go away and pretend she never saw this… then again, maybe she'll go away and get other girls to come see the naked guy. Shit, shit, _shit! _WHAT DO I DO?_

Taking a deep breath, Kiba slid one hand over his groin, effectively concealing the goods, as he turned to the girl. He grinned sheepishly. "Umm… hi."

Her face somehow turning an even deeper shade of red, the girl began to play with her fingers while glancing back and forth between Kiba's crotch and the ground. "Oh, uh… hi. W-why are you out here n-na… like that?"

"They locked me out," Kiba said, nodding towards the door. "Sorry if I scared you there."

"N-no, it's not that. I-I just wasn't expecting…"

"To see a naked hunk like me standing here?" the Inuzuka offered with a forced laugh. He couldn't believe he'd actually said it.

"Yeah," the girl replied, equally shocked by her word choice.

Kiba offered the girl a genuine smile, his cheeks reddening, though not to the same extent as hers. "The name's Kiba."

"I-I know," the girl said before bowing her head. "I-I mean, nice to meet you. I-I'm Hinata Hyuuga."

_Hyuuga?_

His eyes wide, Kiba spun around to face the locker room doors once more just as they burst open. There, a smug Neji awaited some sort of admission of the Inuzuka's defeat, but was instead greeted to the sight of him chatting with Hinata. Immediately, his eyes were filled with rage as he rushed over to stand between the dog boy and the Hyuuga.

"Hinata! What are you doing here?" he asked in an accusatory manner.

"Whoah, calm down, dude. She was just walking by," Kiba said, clamping a hand on Neji's shoulder. "Now, if you don't mind, we were just introducing ourselves…"

Spinning around, Neji slapped Kiba's hand away before delivering a swift kick to his exposed groin. Letting out a muted yelp, the Inuzuka's knees buckled and he fell to the floor, struggling to see clearly through the pain. He could feel his head as it was tilted upward, however, so that it faced the silhouette of Neji above him.

"Now you listen to me, Inuzuka – stay the hell away from my cousin. Got it?"

In the corner of his misty eye, Kiba could just make out Hinata as she cowered off to the side. He smirked. "Fuck you."

Delivering another kick to Kiba's stomach, Neji then walked back to Hinata and grabbed her by the shoulder before dragging her away. As he lay on the floor in agony, Kiba could just make out the look of admiration in Hinata's eyes. Thus, when Naruto hurried out of the locker room to his roommate's aid, a towel in hand, the Inuzuka was smiling despite the pain.

_Hinata Hyuuga, huh? Well, I've always liked a challenge…_

XXXXX

They stared at each other in silence for some time through the glass – Itachi on one side, an armed guard beside him, with Sasuke on the other. Gripping the phone, Sasuke did struggled to maintain his cold exterior, trying hard not to let his emotions get the best of him. His hand began to shake as he gripped the phone harder, his eyes boring into his brother's skull.

He'd done it.

At least, that's what Itachi told the police. That's what the police had reported to the press, and what the press had told the rest of the world. Itachi Uchiha had admitted to parricide. Yes, it had only confirmed what everyone was already certain of – if he had denied the charges, their beliefs would not have been swayed in the slightest. They'd already deemed him guilty in their minds.

But not Sasuke. No, he had feared it, suspected it, and the logical part of his brain had been screaming that it was the truth, but in his heart, Sasuke had always hoped that there was another explanation. That Akatsuki had framed Itachi, or that it had been in self-defense or _anything_ besides cold-blooded murder. His heart didn't want to face what the rest of the world insisted was the truth – he didn't want to suffer that kind of betrayal.

Yet, there he was. Even though they hadn't spoken a word, Itachi had already said enough in his demeanor. The way he tried to avoid eye contact with Sasuke, the way he was hunched over as he held the phone to his ear, as if trying to hide inside of himself, and the way he bit his lip ever so slightly. Sasuke knew – he _was_ guilty. He'd told the truth.

"You bastard," Sasuke muttered, the words as agonizing to Itachi's ears as they were to his own. "Why'd you do it? Huh? WHY?"

Itachi was silent. He bit down harder, drawing a drop of blood from his lip. Sasuke's grip on the phone tightened even more, until he felt it would snap in two.

"Is that it? You have _nothing _to say for yourself? Just tell me why you did it, Itachi! TELL ME WHY!" Sasuke yelled into the phone as he pounded on the glass with his free hand.

The elder Uchiha stared up at the flickering fluorescent lights above. His cheeks were wet. Raising a finger, he poked the glass, right in front of his little brother's face. "I'm sorry, Sasuke… maybe next time…"

Sasuke nearly dropped the phone. He knew those words – they were what Itachi always used to tell him when they'd play as kids. Whenever Sasuke would want Itachi to quit studying and play ninja, he would always poke the younger Uchiha in the forehead and say, 'Sorry, Sasuke – maybe next time.' Sasuke's hands began to quiver as his eyes widened with rage.

"Do you think this is a game? Mom and Dad are dead because of you! You _killed _them, and that's all you have to say? 'Maybe next time?' What the fuck is that supposed to mean?"

Again, Itachi lowered his head. For a second, Sasuke thought he had gotten through to his brother, that perhaps he would explain himself. Instead, Itachi lifted the phone and set it back on the receiver. The guard grabbed the elder Uchiha by the arm and raised him out of the chair, while Sasuke screamed into the phone on his side of the glass.

"Don't you fucking walk away from me! Tell me why you did it, dammit! ITACHI!"

The phone clattered on the table as guards dragged Sasuke away from the glass. The conversation was over, though it raised far more questions than it answered.

_Maybe next time, Itachi…_

_

* * *

_There you have it! I believe this makes it the third chapter in a row featuring one of our characters getting naked in front of a girl, which I believe is a record for me. What's going to happen between Kiba, Neji, and Hinata? What about Sasuke and his tense encounter with Itachi? And what about Naruto and Sasuke's relationship, now that a certain holiday is just around the corner? Find out next time in _For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him, _and remember: review!


	50. Freshly Fallen Silent Shroud of Snow

Good day, dear readers. I have another new chapter for you today - this one's a bit shorter, but it sets up the coming chapters nicely. As much as it saddens me to say this, it's definitely the beginning of the end for our heroes. There's only five or six chapters left, with an epilogue planned, until this story reaches its conclusion. Yes, I also know that an ending is long overdue - what can I say, I'm selfish and wanted to have some more fun with these characters.

Anyway, as usual, thank you all for reading and reviewing, and I hope you enjoy the chapter!

* * *

50. Freshly Fallen, Silent Shroud of Snow

A young Sasuke stood in the middle of the small island near the Uchiha mansion, surrounded by trees. His eyes were closed, and in his hand he held a small, rubber ball. A breeze blew by, rustling the leaves and causing his black hair to blow to the side.

Then he heard it – the snapping of a twig. Hurriedly, he spun around and chucked the rubber ball into a nearby bush. A moment later, a smiling Itachi emerged, rubbing his cheek.

"Well, you got me."

Itachi tilted his head to the side as he dropped the ball in his little brother's hand. "Now what makes you say that? You think I wanted to get hit in the face like that?"

"Because you _always_ win when we play ninja. The only way I could beat you was if you let me win."

Itachi bent down and stared his brother in the eye. "Well, well… aren't you the observant one? I guess you got me."

"I knew it," Sasuke said, turning his head to the side in frustration.

"Okay, so I let you win that time. You know what, though? There's more to being a ninja than being able to listen well. You also have to be able to deceive others, and to be able to see through others' deception. Today, you were the better ninja in that respect."

Sasuke's eyes brightened. "R-really?"

"You bet. Now, what do you say we head home for dinner?" Itachi asked, turning his back to the younger Uchiha. "Come on, I'll give you a ride."

Hopping onto his brother's back, Sasuke was positively beaming as they headed back to the canoe tied up on the shore. They then rode back to the mainland, where Sasuke raced up to the mansion while Itachi secured the canoe to the dock. Upon stepping inside the house, however, he heard voices coming from the kitchen, causing him to grin mischievously.

_Time to put those ninja skills to the test…_

Sidling along the wall, Sasuke stood at the edge of the kitchen and listened as his parents spoke in hushed tones.

"Are you sure about this, dear? Isn't there any other way?" his mother asked.

"There _was_ another way, but unfortunately that option's no longer on the table. Obito would've been a perfect candidate, too… his death was truly unfortunate," Mr. Uchiha replied, sounding rather frustrated.

"But… he's our _son_. What if… I mean, there's only a 25% chance…"

"What other choice do we have?" Sasuke's dad exclaimed, pounding his fist on the table. "If the Sharingan Project fails, we're finished! We have to take that chance!"

His heart palpitating, Sasuke suddenly felt a hand clamp down on his shoulder. Glancing up, he found a very serious-looking Itachi staring into the kitchen. He cleared his throat. "Mom, Dad – we're back."

The Uchiha parents were quiet for a moment before their father finally spoke. "I see. Go wash up, then – dinner will be ready soon."

After hurrying along to the bathroom, Sasuke stood beside his brother at the sink, washing his hands and arms thoroughly. He felt scared, for reasons he did not quite understand. "Itachi? Do you know what Mom and Dad were talking about in there?"

The elder Uchiha paused. "Yes, I do… and it's nothing you need to worry about, okay?"

"Will you tell me?"

Smiling, Itachi poked his brother in the forehead. "Sorry, Sasuke. Maybe next time…"

XXXXX

Sasuke awoke moments later with a headache. He hadn't been sleeping well for the past few weeks, after his visit with Itachi. Every time he closed his eyes, it seemed, his mind inevitably drifted back to their happier childhood days. It wasn't unusual for Sasuke to dream about his past like this, but under the circumstances the visions were not particularly welcome. Every morning, they left the Uchiha troubled and confused as he tried to fathom just what had driven his brother to murder their parents.

Of course, Sasuke only wished that his dreams were the extent of his problems. Gazing out his window to the snowy landscape below, however, it became increasingly clear that other pressing matters needed to be dealt with. Exams would be coming up before too long, with Christmas following not far behind. The exams were an easy enough fix – he just actually had to sit down and study for an hour or so per subject, and he'd pass with flying colors. Christmas was another matter entirely, though – Sasuke had realized the week before that he would have to enlist some help, and since he had yet to talk with Gaara about their little fight, he figured he could kill two birds with one stone.

Sitting up in bed, Sasuke gazed around the freshly painted bedroom. He had done a decent job of making it a close replica of his old room in the Uchiha mansion. Blue walls, blue bedspread, speakers in the corners, sword on the wall – it felt like home. Throwing his legs over the side, Sasuke scratched his bare midriff and adjusted his black boxers as he stood up. It was only then that he actually looked at the time on his clock – it was 12:30.

_Shit! I was supposed to meet Gaara half an hour ago!_

Hurriedly, Sasuke threw on some clothes and picked up his cell phone. Not surprisingly, there were several texts from Gaara, each less polite than the last, with the last message simply reading "…". Cringing, Sasuke pocketed the phone and rushed out of his room, where he nearly ran headfirst into the very redhead in question.

"You're late, Uchiha," Gaara said, his arms crossed impatiently.

"Umm… sorry about that. I didn't sleep well last night," Sasuke admitted embarrassedly. "Hope you weren't waiting too long."

"It's okay – I really wanted to spend my Saturday sitting at the bus stop," the redhead said before turning towards the stairs. "I finally decided to come over to see if you were alive."

"Didn't mean to worry you," the Uchiha replied as he followed Gaara down the stairs.

Glancing back over his shoulder, Gaara raised an eyebrow. "Who said anything about being worried?"

Sasuke felt a sinking feeling in his gut. If he hadn't been sure about Gaara's feelings towards him before, he certainly was now. He wondered why he was even bothering trying to make peace with the other teen. For all Sasuke knew, Gaara would always view him as a rival in love and nothing other than that. He felt that he'd never be anything but an obstacle for Gaara to overcome on his way to Naruto – either that, or he just really, _really_ hated Sasuke. Both were distinct possibilities.

After they had bundled up with their winter gear – a black jacket, boots, and a blue scarf for Sasuke, and a red coat with a matching stocking cap for Gaara – they stepped outside, the snow crunching under their feet. At first, Sasuke wasn't sure what to say, so he instead observed the scenery of Konoha in December. There were a few rabbit tracks in the middle of the yard, their imprint just visible on the dusty snow as the sun shined down above. A bitter wind blew by, causing Sasuke to wrap the scarf around his neck more tightly as he and Gaara stepped onto the slushy sidewalk.

To Sasuke's surprise, it was then that Gaara broke the silence with a forced cough. "Uchiha… I'm sorry. About what happened at the party, that is…"

"That's partly why I wanted to meet you today… I wanted to apologize, too. It was wrong of me to play with your emotions like that," Sasuke said, staring down at the path before him. "I know it can't be easy for you… I mean, I got jealous just at the thought of you taking Naruto from me. For you to have to sit by and watch, though… it can't be easy."

Gaara chuckled. "It's easier than you'd think. Lee helps."

"You love him, don't you?"

"More than I'd like to admit," Gaara replied, staring skyward. "I guess it's hardly fair of me to want them both, isn't it?"

"You can't really control how you feel," Sasuke concluded, glancing over at the other teen. "If you love them both, there's not much you can do about that."

"I know… but I can control my actions. I knew exactly what I was doing at that party, and it wasn't right. I wanted to sabotage your relationship… but I understand that now. I'll back off."

"You brought up a good point, though. I was hiding things from Naruto – I guess I needed you to help me recognize that. So… thanks for that," the Uchiha said, his cheeks burning slightly, and not just from the cold wind.

"And I guess I have to thank you, too. I was trying to ignore those feelings I still had for Naruto, hoping they'd just go away as I grew closer to Lee. You made me confront that part of myself, though… it helped me make a decision."

"So… you've made a choice?" Sasuke asked, his breath forming a cloud before him. "Between Naruto and Lee, that is?"

"You could say that, yes. Lee… he cares about me so much. I want to return that kind of love, and I can't do that if I'm still longing for Naruto."

Sasuke remained silent for a moment as the duo approached the bus stop. As luck would have it, the bus was already there waiting for passengers, and so they hopped on, taking a seat near the window in the back. It was then that the Uchiha decided to come clean.

"Gaara… there was another reason I wanted to meet with you today."

"I know," Gaara replied simply, a slight smile crossing his lips. "I take it you want me to help you find a gift for Naruto?"

Sasuke was stunned. "H-how did you know?"

"Why else would you want to meet me at the mall? You don't seem like the type to just hang out with so many people around," the redhead explained somewhat smugly. "Sure, I'll help you. I'll consider this penance, I guess."

Staring out the window as they headed further downtown, passing many people bundled up on the sidewalks, Sasuke sighed. "I… I just don't know what to get him. I don't want to get him just anything… it has to mean something."

"Well, let's start with what he likes. You know that much, right?" Gaara asked, resting his head on the back of the seat.

"Of course I do!" Sasuke replied indignantly, only to pause a moment as he tried to think of a good response. "He likes the color orange… that was the first thing he told me about himself. Umm… he likes foxes, ramen, and videogames…"

"Okay, that's nice, but none of that really means anything, does it? You're not going to get him a big bowl of ramen for Christmas – doesn't really show a lot of thought on your part." Gaara rubbed his chin, realizing that he wasn't getting through to the Uchiha. "Look at it this way – I know Lee loves martial arts, but I didn't get him a mouth guard. Instead, I found something that summed up our relationship."

"And what exactly would that be?"

The redhead chuckled. "It wouldn't mean anything to you, Uchiha. It's something between us… something that we both hold dear." Seeing Sasuke's continued stare, Gaara sighed. "If you must know, though, it's a teddy bear – an old one that I had buried in the attic. He gave me his old bear when I was in the hospital… you see? It's significant for _us._"

Sasuke frowned. He couldn't think of any particular item that exemplified the relationship between him and Naruto. They had places more than they had particular objects. There was their bridge in the park, their time at Lake Konoha, the sauna at the Uchiha mansion, the showers at school, Naruto's bedroom – places where they came together, both physically and emotionally. But that didn't lead to a good gift – Sasuke couldn't give Naruto a bridge, at least not anymore, after losing most of his fortune.

_Damn… why couldn't Itachi have waited until _after_ Christmas to get himself arrested?_

The Uchiha shook his head. That was not the way to think about this situation – it shouldn't matter that he no longer had a great amount of money to spend on a gift. He should be able to find something meaningful regardless of his budget.

_Come on… there has to be _something_! The only thing that we really had between the two of us was that project for Kakashi's class… everything else has been some sort of event that can't really be defined by an object…_

"Gaara… would something handmade work, you think?"

"Of course it would – those are oftentimes the best gifts of all," Gaara replied, glancing over at his companion. "I take it you have something in mind?"

A smile crossing his lips, Sasuke nodded as the bus rolled to a stop. "I do… and, unfortunately, it's nothing I can find at the mall."

Groaning, Gaara leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes, a similar smirk gracing his features. "Fine. Just remind me of this the next time you want me to waste a Saturday."

"Will do."

XXXXX

Across town, Naruto Uzumaki was having the exact opposite problem as his boyfriend. While Sasuke was confident in his studies but struggling to find a gift, Naruto had already completed his Christmas shopping, if only to put off studying as long as possible. With exams coming up quickly, however, the blond was now struggling to catch up on reading and trying to force foreign concepts into his head. The result was a very strong headache as he lay on the floor in his apartment across from Kiba, who was chewing on the end of his pencil while examining an open textbook.

_Okay, Naruto, focus. It's just advanced algebra… which you have failed to study for the past month. That's okay, though – how hard could it be?_

Staring down at the next question on his study guide, Naruto felt a cold sweat run down his face. There were two boxes sitting side by side, one labeled 'A,' the other 'B.' The question read, "Find the value of matrix AB." Scratching his head, the blond quickly scribbled "the red pill" and moved onto the next question.

Unfortunately, the next question also involved matrices, a concept Naruto had apparently slept through over a multiple week period. He frowned. Sasuke was going to kill him when Naruto asked him to explain it later. Glancing up, he found Kiba looking similarly frustrated.

"Any luck?" Naruto asked with a heavy sigh.

"Are you kidding? I can't understand a word of this garbage," Kiba replied before gently stroking Akamaru's fur beside him. "Maybe if I had a chance to study at our meets I'd be fine, but Gai forbids it – says class is an unnecessary distraction from the important world of athletics."

"How does he still have a job again?"

"I think Principal Tsunade's afraid to fire him – I mean, he's about as far from stable as you can get."

"Well, I don't understand any of this, either. At least I can understand history and English… I just have to sit down and read it," Naruto said, closing his textbook with contempt. "Science and math, though… it's beyond me."

Kiba looked up at his roommate with a devilish grin. "Study break?"

"You bet."

Standing up in unison, Naruto and Kiba rushed over to the couch, where they both picked up a controller. Within a matter of seconds, they were in a heated game of Soul Calibur while Akamaru looked on, barking supportively. While their respective characters wailed on each other, Naruto decided to fill the silence with some casual conversation.

"So, any luck with Miss Hinata?"

"Not really, no. I tried talking to her once between classes, but it's like that Neji has eyes in the back of his head," Kiba replied as his character threw Naruto's over the edge of a cliff. "I really didn't want to get kicked in the balls again, so as soon as I saw him coming I took off."

"I'm sure Hinata was really impressed by that," Naruto said with a smirk. "What makes you think she's interested in you, anyway?"

"Dude, she's seen me naked. Who _wouldn't_ be interested?"

"I rest my case," the blond teased as a new match began.

"Look, you weren't there. When we were talking in the hallway, though, there was definitely _something_ there. She was so embarrassed, but she couldn't look away. I don't know… I never really noticed her before, but from the way she was talking it sounded as if she had been watching me for years."

"Well, you can be a bit thick…"

"That's what she said."

Ignoring his friend's remark, Naruto grinned as he slashed Kiba's character in half. "Okay, let's say she was into you – how do you plan on getting around Neji? It's not like he's going to just ignore you. He's obviously protective of her. You're going to have to confront that eventually."

"And what do you suggest I do, huh? Buy him flowers?" Kiba asked wryly. "The guy hates my guts – no amount of buttering up is going to change that."

"Who said anything about buttering up?"

Kiba paused the game just as he character was knocked skyward. "What'chu talkin' 'bout, Naruto?"

"Look, you tried talking with Neji, and he kicked you in the nuts. I hardly think a guy who's willing to kick a naked guy like that is going to listen to reason. Christmas is coming up soon – if you're going to make any headway with Hinata, you'll have to get her a gift. To do that, though, you'll have to show Neji that he can't stand between the two of you."

"Okay… so what do I have to do?"

Naruto grinned. "Kick his ass, of course."

The blood drained from Kiba's face as he spun to face his roommate. "You can't be serious. The guy's a black belt! He'd mop the floor with me!"

"I never said it would be easy, but Neji's not going to let up unless you give him a reason to."

"And you think fighting him is the way to do it? How the hell does that make sense? I love your cousin, and if you have a problem with that, I'll punch you until you don't?"

"Look, Kiba, you're thinking about this like a normal person. That's not who Neji is, though – he's out of his _freakin' mind_. He thinks he's better than everyone else because of fate. Therefore, only people that he deems worthy would be good enough for Hinata. You just have to show him that fate favors you more than him."

"Do I have to remind you? He's a _black belt. _He probably knows 20 different ways to kill me with just his pinky finger."

Without a word, Naruto reached over for Kiba's controller and unpaused the game. Before the dog-boy could react, Naruto had already thrown Kiba's character off the cliff, thus granting him victory. Kiba scowled.

"What the hell was that?"

"_That_ was how you can beat Neji. You need to catch him off guard. I'm not talking about a sucker punch or anything – that would just be cheap – but you can challenge him when he'd least expect it. I mean, he'd already be surprised if you wanted to fight him, but depending on the time or the place, you can secure a certain advantage."

"Like… a public setting?"

"No, that wouldn't work. Neji doesn't care who's around – once he's fighting, he'll focus on winning no matter what. That's just the kind of guy he is," Naruto explained before closing his eyes in concentration. After thinking a moment, his eyes snapped open, his lips curling into a wicked smile. "No… public won't work, but I know just what will."

Kiba looked exasperated. "Well, come on! Out with it!"

"You're not gonna like it," Naruto responded before making his plan known. As he thought, Kiba was less than thrilled with the idea, but he knew he had no choice. If he wanted to win Hinata over, he'd have to bite the bullet on this one.

* * *

Well, there you have it. What exactly does Sasuke have planned for his beloved Naruto? And what does Naruto have for his Uchiha? Furthermore, what exactly is Naruto's plan for this fight between Kiba and Neji, and will it work out in the end, or will Kiba end up with a broken jaw and virtually no chance at winning Hinata's heart? Find out in the next chapter of _For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him!_


	51. Shades of Mediocrity

What's this? An early update? It's more likely than you think. I figured that, since the last chapter was on the short side, I would hurry and deliver this even shorter chapter as soon as possible. Hopefully you'll enjoy it - I certainly had a blast with the first scene. Thank you all for reading and reviewing, and now, on with the chapter!

* * *

51. Shades of Mediocrity

December 23rd – it was the last day of school before Christmas break, and Kiba had been delaying on his little confrontation with Neji, hoping the situation would resolve itself. Over the past week he had tried conversing with Hinata in private, only to wind up with his head shoved into a locker or, yes, receiving another swift kick to the groin. It was obvious Naruto was right – Neji would only allow Kiba to see Hinata if the dog-boy could prove his worth.

That, of course, meant putting Naruto's plan into action.

And, so, Kiba found himself in a familiar position – standing naked in the locker room, towel in hand, he walked towards the showers. He had been watching Neji for a few minutes, waiting for the Hyuuga to enter the shower area. That was the extent of Naruto's plan – confront Neji while they were both the most vulnerable. The combination of sweat and steam would make Kiba a slippery target, and the wet floor might interfere with Neji's usual fighting style, relying greatly on smooth, swift motions and footwork.

At least, that was the theory. It wasn't like Kiba had great experience fighting while wet and naked. The only other time had been, oddly enough, a month ago with Neji, when he first met Hinata, and that was a very one-sided affair. He had gone over it in his head, however, and he had discussed possible tactics with Shikamaru. That was the one advantage the Inuzuka had – preparedness – and he intended to use it.

With the hot water pouring all around him, Kiba entered the showers, trying his best to look confident as he sauntered over to Neji. That had been one key piece of advice Shikamaru had given him: show confidence. If Kiba looked weak, he'd only give Neji a mental advantage. If he looked cocky, though, there was a chance Kiba could actually beat him. After all, Neji was likely to be thrown off, having to fight another naked guy.

_This could be Naruto's dumbest idea yet… but it's just stupid enough to work._

"Hey! Hyuuga!" Kiba barked, standing behind Neji with his hands on his hips. "What do you say you and I have a little chat, huh?"

Glancing over his shoulder irritably, Neji looked surprisingly frightening with his long, brown hair sticking to his face. "Forget it. I'm not going to let you near Hinata."

"Sorry you feel that way," the Inuzuka continued, pounding his fist into his open palm. He grinned wickedly, tilting his head to the side. "Because I'm gonna keep coming after her, whether you like it or not."

"You're a glutton for punishment, aren't you?" Neji muttered as he began to work shampoo into his flowing locks. "You'll wind up in a coma if you keep this up."

Suddenly, Kiba slammed his hand against the wall just beside Neji's head. His face contorted into a snarl as the Hyuuga looked up at him in mild surprise. "Is that a threat, Hyuuga?"

Neji paused and turned around to face the Inuzuka. "What do you think?"

"I think I've had just about enough of you standing between the two of us. Do you have something against me personally? Or are you just afraid your cousin might fall for me?" Kiba asked, flashing a cocky smile.

For the first time, Neji's cool demeanor cracked. His hand curled into a fist. "Hinata's out of your league. Just leave her alone, Inuzuka."

_That's it. I just need to get him to swing first – that way I can call it self-defense. No one has to get expelled over this…_

"Out of her league? And why's that? Because I'm not a preppy rich boy like you? Or maybe you're just afraid that I _am_ right for her. She obviously likes me, and it's just tearing you apart, isn't it? You're afraid that she'll be _happy_, and you couldn't possibly let that happen, could you, you miserable fatalist son of a b–"

Kiba had to take a quick step back as Neji took a swing, his fist passing just beneath the dog-boy's nose. Though he was happy that he had managed to provoke the attack, he was a bit uncomfortable at how quickly the punch had come. The next attack came even quicker, as Neji charged through the showers like a bull for his target. Fortunately, Kiba was able to slide to the side, and Neji only slipped onto the ground as he tried to stop on the wet floor.

Seeing the fire in the other teen's eyes, lying humiliated on the tile, Kiba realized that he might be in trouble. If Neji had been able to pulverize him before while completely stoic, Kiba could only imagine what he was capable of when angry. Of course, Kiba had no intention of letting Neji find out, for while he was still lying spread-eagle on the floor, the dog-boy rushed over to land a quick blow. Unfortunately, as he lifted his leg to deliver a kick, Kiba's footing gave out as well, causing him to come crashing down beside the other teen.

And thus began what would become the most infamous fight in Konoha High history. The battle between Gaara and Naruto? That was brutal, but people got over it. After all, the two combatants were now good friends. The catfight between Sakura and Ino, involving hair pulling, biting, and scratches, originating solely in an argument over who loved Sasuke more? Hilarious? Yes. Frightening? _Yes_. But this fight was on a completely different level.

The reason for this level of infamy? Kiba and Neji were both naked – this was something unprecedented in a fight at Konoha High, and it was the reason why the duo drew such a large crowd as the proceeded to tussle on the shower room floor. Lying side by side, they both struggled to be the first to his feet. Unfortunately, the soapy water made it quite difficult to stand, and so they instead resorted to grappling, glaring at each other as they rolled out of the locker room and into the main locker room.

Straddling the other teen, Neji landed a punch to Kiba's cheek. Spitting out some blood, Kiba forced the other off him with a powerful kick, sending him flying back into the laundry bin full of used towels, gym shirts, and jockstraps. Peeling some of the laundry from him, Neji, seized one of the towels and threw it over Kiba's head, momentarily blinding him. By the time Kiba had pulled the makeshift blindfold off, Neji was already tackling the Inuzuka to the ground, resting his knee on the dog-boy's chest.

Holding up two palms, Kiba blocked Neji's incoming punches and locked eyes in a staring match, digging into the other teen's knuckles with his claw-like nails. Neji was clearly in pain as the nails drew blood, but he refused to back out, instead placing more pressure on Kiba's chest with his knee.

"You're dead, Inuzuka. Do you hear me? _Dead_," Neji growled, leaning his face in closer to his opponent's.

With a grin, Kiba spat on Neji's face. Immediately, the Hyuuga eased up on the pressure and removed his hands as he wiped the offending liquid from his cheek. It was then that Kiba made his move, pushing Neji away from him as he rose to his feet. By now, a circle of awed spectators had formed around the duo – there was no escape now.

Letting out something like a growl, Kiba charged forward and grabbed Neji just beneath the arms, where he picked him off the ground. He then shoved the Hyuuga up against a nearby locker and readied a punch. Neji was already prepared with a punch of his own, however, and sent his fist crashing into Kiba's eye.

"Son of a bitch!" Kiba cried as he staggered back. Already, he could feel his eye beginning to swell up.

It was Neji's turn to force the dog-boy against the lockers, which, Kiba found, hurt a lot more than one would expect. There, they exchanged blow after blow. A punch to Neji's stomach, a kick to Kiba's side, desperate head butt to Neji's chest – it went on for a short time, until both teens were covered with scratches and mild bruises.

It was then that Kiba saw the all-too familiar attack coming: Neji's foot homing in on Kiba's family jewels. Fortunately, having been on the receiving end of that kick several times, Kiba was ready for it. Gracefully side-stepping the blow, Kiba watched as the kick sailed past before delivering his counterattack. While Neji remained stunned, Kiba lunged forward with his knee, slamming against the Hyuuga's chest.

Neji's eyes went wide as he let out a weak cough. He stumbled back for a moment, trying to catch his breath, before he fell backward and collapsed onto the floor. His breathing heavy, Kiba loomed over his fallen opponent, who stared up at the Inuzuka in a strange combination of fear and disgust.

"You lose, Hyuuga," Kiba declared, resting his foot upon the other teen's chest. "I've shown you how far I'm willing to go for her. So will you leave me and Hinata alone now?"

Neji appeared to consider resisting for a moment, only to finally relent with a sigh. "Only if you put some goddamned pants on."

Kiba smiled. "Gladly."

XXXXX

Shikamaru lay on the couch in his apartment, the phone pressed up against his ear as he gazed idly at the television. Choji was busy playing Smash Bros., and the Nara was supposed to be participating as well. Instead, his character simply sat on the edge of the screen, occasionally being pushed over as his roommate duked it out with a few computer opponents.

No, Shikamaru couldn't possibly play the game and give Sasuke the attention he deserved at the same time – not when the Uchiha was so clearly nervous and serious about their current subject.

"Look, Sasuke, I'm sure Naruto will love whatever you get him for Christmas – within reason of course. I mean, I doubt a Hallmark card would cut it, but you know what I mean – if he can tell you put some thought into it, it'll mean a lot to him."

Sasuke groaned on the other end. "I know, I know… it's just… well, this idea sounded a lot better in my head."

"You know he'll like the CD…"

"But what if he already has it?"

Shikamaru sighed, "Look, Sasuke, you've _seen_ his collection. You know what music he has – unless he got it within the past 24-hours, I think you're safe. The CD, the luffa, all that stuff will be just fine. I mean, it's Naruto, right? He knows what all that means, and he'll appreciate the significance of it."

"But…"

"Sasuke, just let me talk for a minute. You can be such a pain in the ass when you get worked up over these little things," Shikamaru chastised in a case of tough love. "My real concern is that last item you mentioned…"

Sasuke paused, the only sound on the other end of the line being his slow breaths. "I figured you'd say that…"

"You know what happened the last time, Sasuke. If you're not 100% sure…"

"That was different. This time I know it. I want us to share that…"

Shikamaru chewed on his lower lip for a second, watching as Mario was sent flying off screen for the umpteenth time that match. "Let me ask you this, then. Are you only doing this because it's Christmas? Or is this something that you were planning on doing anyway?"

"If Christmas weren't around the corner, I would've told him weeks ago," Sasuke said, his voice firm and resolute. It caught Shikamaru a bit off guard, hearing such confidence from his friend regarding his love life. Usually Sasuke seemed uncertain about Naruto – he would try to put on a good act, but it was a feeble effort against Shikamaru's perceptiveness. This time, there was none of that wavering that he usually sensed in Sasuke. He wasn't uncertain about Naruto any longer – he knew exactly what he wanted.

Relieved, Shikamaru's lips curled into a smile. "If that's the case, then that's all that matters."

"Glad to have your blessing."

Though Sasuke said it sarcastically, the Nara knew that the words were genuine. After all, he wouldn't have called Shikamaru in the first place if he weren't looking for his advice. "You're welcome, Sasuke. By the way, I'm going to be out of town the next few days to visit my parents, so I thought I'd say this now while I have the chance. Merry Christmas, Sasuke."

"Merry Christmas, Shikamaru."

With that, the teens hung up simultaneously, at which point Shikamaru picked up his controller. "Okay, Choji, no more cheap shots for you."

As the snow fell outside, Shikamaru felt his eyes grow a bit misty in spite of himself. The moody, sulking teen he had met a few years ago had grown up so much in just a few months. It was strange – as much as he and Kakashi had wanted it to happen, he never thought Sasuke would actually change so drastically. To see the transformation take place right before his eyes was surreal. In just a few months, Sasuke had gone from the cold loner to the open, loving teen they had today.

_Well… loving might not be the right word. He's certainly not the ass he used to be… at least not as much. It's more like… I'm finally seeing the Sasuke I always felt I knew… the one that was hiding beneath that hardened exterior. And I guess I have Naruto to thank for it…_

Smiling, the Nara whispered to himself, "Merry Christmas to you, too, Naruto…"

"What did you say?" Choji asked, sticking his tongue out in concentration as he mashed buttons.

"Oh, nothing," Shikamaru replied wistfully. "Just thinking aloud."

* * *

Awkward fights! Awkward phone conversations! What will Kiba do now to win over Hinata, now that Neji's out of the way, and what of Sasuke's Christmas present? He's given a few cryptic hints, but are there any ideas of what he'll actually deliver? And what about Naruto's gift for Sasuke? Gaara and Lee? Kiba and Hinata? Shikamaru and Temari? Kakashi and Iruka? It's a Christmas celebration next time in _For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him!_


	52. Deep and Dark December

Hello, dear readers! I know this chapter is a tad late, but hopefully it'll be worth it. The Christmas chapter! I know it's a bit early, but the radio stations are already playing Christmas music, so I say it's close enough.

WARNING: lemon in this chapter. If you don't like it, I suggest you skip the last part of this one, since it gets a bit steamy.

Don't want to give any more away, so I'll just quickly thank you all for reading and reviewing. Now, on with the chapter!

* * *

52. Deep and Dark December

Gaara, Lee, Temari, and Kankuro sat around their small, artificial tree in the living room of their house Christmas morning, a modest pile of gifts sitting in their midst. Lee had stopped by for the morning, though he would have to head home for the festivities with his family early in the afternoon. As for the Subakuno siblings, they were all sitting around in their robes, having only just woken up an hour or so before.

For Gaara, it felt very strange having Christmas without their father. He imagined Temari and Kankuro shared this sentiment – as though a piece of their family were missing. Still, the redhead knew that _they_ were together. Their family wasn't broken, but only altered. Change wasn't necessarily a bad thing, either. Gaara could remember their father sitting in his armchair, watching the present opening like a referee. Each child was allowed to open one gift at a time, and only on his word – violating this rule resulted in the loss of said gift. It was typical of Mr. Subakuno's authoritarian style of parenting, and it was the one aspect of Christmas Gaara did not in any way miss.

Then, of course, there was Lee. That was certainly a welcomed change. It had been a rough couple of months in the aftermath of that accident. They had lost a parent, but both Temari and Gaara had gained new loves. As for Kankuro, he had found at least some success with his puppet shows. Sure, he wasn't making Muppet-level fortunes, but he was at least happy and doing what he loved.

_It's time to move on, I suppose… we'll make sure next year is only full of happy memories that we can remember fondly years from now…_

Sitting cross-legged on the floor, Temari pulled the edge of her black robe down and reached for the first gift. "Okay, this first gift is from me to Kankuro. Merry Christmas!"

Grinning, Kankuro rose to his knees, his blue robe flapping open to reveal his t-shirt and green boxers. After taking the box, he tore off the wrapping paper and stared at the box within for a second. He laughed. "How'd you know?"

"Oh! What is it?" Lee asked excitedly, sitting up to take a better look.

Equally intrigued, Gaara leaned forward ever so slightly as his brother lifted the package for all to see. Inside was a package of socks of various colors. Lee looked disappointed. "Socks?"

"They're for my puppet show," Kankuro explained, setting the gift off to the side. "I like to use some variety – marionettes, ventriloquist dolls, and, yes, sock puppets. The little kids really like the sock puppets." Turning to Temari, the brunet smiled softly. "Thanks, sis."

"You're welcome, Kankuro. Now, moving right along," Temari began, picking up another package. "Why, this one's for me! What are the odds? 'To Temari from Shikamaru.'"

"Too bad he couldn't be here in person," Kankuro said in a high-pitched voice as he tested out one of his new sock puppets.

"Yeah, but he said his mom would kill him if he missed Christmas – something tells me she meant it, too," the blonde replied as she ripped off the red wrapping paper. She raised an eyebrow as she pulled out its various contents: several brightly colored scrunchies, a brush, lipstick, perfume, and several tubes of chap stick. "Oh, Shika… practical as always."

"They're all your colors, right?" Gaara asked, scanning the assorted items from across the circle.

"Well, yeah. Still, you'd think he'd try something a bit more romantic than chap stick…" Temari began, only to trail off after noticing a small card at the bottom of the box. She picked it up curiously and unfolded it. "What do we have here?"

Watching his sister silently read the letter, Gaara could only guess at its contents. Of course, it wasn't too hard to guess, based on Temari's reactions. At first she seemed confused. Then touched. Then she blushed profusely. Finally, a single tear rolled down her cheek. She sealed the card shut, only to realize that everyone in the room was staring right at her.

"Umm… it was a poem, if you must know. So, let's see who's next…"

"Oh no… you're not getting out of this that easily," Kankuro said in a different, deeper voice, speaking with the red sock on his hand. "You have to tell us what was inside."

"I figured you'd say that…" Temari sighed and opened the card back up. She cleared her throat.

_"To a troublesome girl…_

_At first I thought you'd drive me crazy_

_'You can't smoke,' 'Don't be so lazy'_

_It was like my mother all over again_

_That's how it felt at first, but then…_

_I realized none of that mattered to me_

_I noticed your eyes, green like the sea_

_Your laugh, always sarcastic and dry_

_The warmth of your body pressed against mine_

_You've molded me like a block of clay_

_And made me the man I am today_

_I would give nothing in all the world_

_In exchange for you, my troublesome girl"_

"Shikamaru wrote that?" Gaara asked with a skeptical expression. "I didn't think he had it in him. Remind me to harass him about this later."

"Will do," Temari said, closing the card with a blush. "Now, as for our next gift… how about these two? To Lee from Gaara, and to Gaara from Lee."

"You want us to open them together?" the redhead asked, taking the box tentatively.

"Sure… let's see what the two lovebirds got each other," Kankuro chimed in with a chuckle as he sat back on the floor.

Shuffling uncomfortably in his seat, Gaara pulled his red robe tighter around him and glanced at Lee, who was pressing his ear to his gift, trying to determine what was inside. "Hmm… it's not that loud. Is it clothes?"

"Just open it, Lee," Gaara said as he proceeded to peel the paper from his box.

Eagerly, the mop-topped teen tore off the wrapping paper, revealing a shoebox within. He studied it curiously. "Shoes?"

"That's just a box, Lee. Look inside."

"Oh. That makes sense," Lee said before cracking the package open. There, he froze, his eyes widening at what lay inside. "Gaara… is this…?"

As Lee held up the old, ragged teddy bear for all to see, Gaara nodded. "I did some digging around in the attic. Apparently we kept it when we moved from Suna. I'd assumed it was long gone…"

Evidently touched by the gift, Lee gazed at his boyfriend with misty eyes. "A-are you sure? I mean… it's your bear…"

"And you gave me _your_ old bear. It's only fair, right?" Gaara said with a shrug. "Besides, I didn't even know I had him…"

Suddenly, Lee cut off the redhead's sentence with a strong embrace, one that threatened to suffocate Gaara right where he sat. "Thank you, Gaara… thank you so much…"

"Merry Christmas, Lee," Gaara gasped, tapping Lee's shoulder repeatedly for air.

"All right, little brother – that's enough stalling from you," Temari teased, glancing at the other package. "Let's see what your boy toy got you."

Releasing his boyfriend, Lee looked somewhat sheepish. "It probably won't compare to your gift, but… I hope you like it, anyway…"

Gaara rolled his eyes and began to remove the green wrapping paper, saying, "Please, Lee. I'm sure I'll love it… what the… what is this?"

Indeed, he wasn't exactly sure what he was holding at first. He had expected something simple, but this was far more extravagant than anything Gaara would have ever anticipated. It was a long, black case with two silver rings set within. In between was an inscription reading, 'To someone special.' Gaara stared up at Lee in disbelief.

"They're promise rings," Lee explained, lifting the clear, plastic lid from the case. He pulled out one of the rings and slipped it on his finger. "One for you, and one for me. To show our commitment to each other…"

Looking up from the rings to Lee, Gaara could see the distinct glimmer of hope reflected in the other boy's eyes. Clearly, the rings meant more to Lee than whether Gaara liked the gift or not. This was a test – a choice between loyalty to Lee or his lingering feelings for Naruto.

Of course, Lee probably didn't have such manipulative intentions – it just wasn't like him. If anything, the rings were just his way of expressing his devotion to Gaara. At the same time, though, Lee _had_ to realize the significance of his gift. Lee might've been a bit naïve at times, but he was by no means stupid.

_If I refuse to wear it, Lee will still love me… but it'll crush him. At the same time, though, he won't want me to wear it unless I'm truly committed to him…_

Again, Gaara glanced back and forth between the rings and his boyfriend's bright, shining eyes. Fortunately for Lee, the redhead had made his decision several weeks before. He let a small smile cross his lips as he slipped his matching ring onto his finger.

"I love it."

Lee appeared stunned. "R-really? You mean it?"

"Of course – didn't I say I would?" Gaara asked with a smirk.

Elated, Lee once more pounced upon Gaara, planting an enthusiastic kiss on the other teen's lips. As Gaara returned with pressure of his own, his hands lacing behind Lee's head to pull him closer, his eyes closed. He could hear Kankuro protesting the very open display of affection in the background, but at that moment, Gaara couldn't have cared less. Instead, he simply allowed himself to become lost in the scents and flavors of his boyfriend, feeling the warmth of the other's body as the lay on the floor.

At that moment, if he had been thinking of anything aside from his passionate kiss with Lee, Gaara would have realized that Naruto was the furthest thing from his mind. Considering that he _was_ distracted, though, it never occurred to Gaara that he had given Lee the greatest gift of all: his undivided affection.

XXXXX

"This is it?"

"Yeah, Mom. Can you wait here for just a minute?"

"Well… yeah, sure. But this place is _huge_, Kiba. Just what kind of girl are we talking about here?"

"She's probably out of my league, I know. But I have to try, right?"

"That's the spirit. Break a leg, kid."

Kiba stepped out of the idling, black sedan and gave his mom a quick wave as he started for the Hyuuga mansion. He was sweating bullets, in spite of the bitter cold that Christmas morning, so much so that he unzipped his gray jacket to let out some of the heat. His heart pounded in his ears, and his tongue felt dry as he trudged up the seemingly endless driveway.

Mrs. Inuzuka had arrived that morning to take him back to Mizu for the holiday. He had asked that she drop him off at the Hyuuga residence for only a few minutes, just so he could deliver a message and take care of some last minute business before leaving town. She hadn't said a word about his black eye or the other cuts and bruises he'd obtained from the fight with Neji, though Kiba had seen the silent concern in her eyes. She knew something was up, and that it likely had something to do with their little detour.

Something told Kiba they'd be having a long, long talk on the drive back home.

Right now, though, he had to focus on the task at hand – the one that was making him as nervous as hell. He stood at the door to the Hyuuga mansion, kicking some of the snow off to the side absentmindedly as he tried to give himself a mental pep talk.

_Come on, Kiba! What's the big deal? You had no problem chatting with her when you were butt naked, why should this be any different?_

Kiba, of course, knew the answer to his own question: that had been spontaneous. He had been thrown into that situation, and his instincts had taken over. Now, though, he was actively pursuing Hinata – he had come to the Hyuuga mansion that morning specifically to talk to her. The ball was in his court, and he was certain that he'd find a way to screw it up.

Of course, one guaranteed way to blow it would be to stand on their porch for an hour until they called the cops. He had to do something – stalling wasn't going to solve anything. Taking a deep breath, the dog boy stared down at the single rose in his hand and nodded.

"No time like the present, I guess…"

His hand shaking in trepidation, Kiba reached forward and rang the doorbell. The tone seemed to echo throughout the massive house, and the low sound shook Kiba to the core.

_For whom does the bell toll? It tolls for… me…_

It was less than a minute before Kiba heard the door unlock. Moments later, it swung open to reveal a grumpy looking man who closely resembled Neji, if only twenty-five years older. He glared down at the Inuzuka with his pale eyes, already silently passing judgment on the teen.

"May I help you?" the man, who Kiba assumed to be Hinata's father, asked curtly.

"Umm… is Hinata here?" Kiba asked, trying his best not to cower under the man's imposing gaze.

Mr. Hyuuga paused, staring directly at Kiba's black eye. "Who wants to know?"

"My name's Kiba Inuzuka. We go to school together."

The man paused a moment before shaking his head. He began to close the door, "Sorry, you'll have to come back later. We're just sitting down to open presents…"

Before he could shut the door, Kiba stuck his foot inside, just barely wedging it open. Though it hurt to essentially have the door slam on his foot, the Inuzuka endured the pain and gritted his teeth, saying, "Please, it'll only take a second."

Mr. Hyuuga's expression softened, if only for a moment, at the sight of Kiba's determination. He sighed. "Very well. Wait right here – I'll send her over."

"Thank you, sir," Kiba responded with a relieved smile.

Shifting his feet uncomfortably in the snow, the dog-boy waited for Mr. Hyuuga to follow through with his promise. Though flakes fell about him, Kiba still felt unusually warm, his cheeks already burning with embarrassment at the thought of what was to come.

Of course, Kiba's reddening cheeks couldn't hold a candle to Hinata's bright blush when she finally opened the door. Seeing the Inuzuka waiting, with her clad in her bathrobe, she flushed immediately, though she didn't turn away, instead choosing to stare at her guest.

"K-Kiba! W-what are you doing here?" she stammered, pulling her robe tightly around her breasts. "It's Christmas morning…"

"I know, and I'm sure you have things to do, but I had to stop by, just for a second," Kiba explained, holding out the lonely rose in his hand. "I'm sure you could probably do much better than me, Hinata… I don't know why you'd ever want to settle for someone like me. But still… what I mean is… will you go out with me?"

Staring at the extended flower, Hinata was silent, her mouth agape. "A-are you serious?"

Kiba bit his lip, his heart sinking. "I understand if you don't want to… I just thought I'd ask…"

Turning dejectedly to the side, Kiba began to slink away, the rose held loosely at his side. He only moved a step or two, however, before he was stopped by the soft, pure tone of Hinata's voice. "W-wait, Kiba!" Glancing back over his shoulder, Kiba found Hinata standing barefoot in the snow, her lip quivering as she struggled to speak. "I… I'd love to go out with you…"

Almost immediately, Kiba's entire body seemed to light up. "You mean it?"

Hinata nodded. "I-I like you, Kiba. You're funny you have a good heart, and a nice… umm…"

"Ass?" Kiba offered with a cheeky grin.

The Hyuuga blushed. "_Physique._"

Kiba chuckled. "Well, how about the Friday after we get back from break?"

"It's a date," Hinata replied before looking down to her frigid toes. "I-I guess I should get back inside…"

"Sure thing. Merry Christmas, Hinata," Kiba said with a casual wave as he started back down the driveway.

"Merry Christmas, Kiba."

With a spring in his step, the Inuzuka strutted back to his mom's sedan, where he hopped into the passenger seat. Grinning broadly, he buckled his safety belt and looked to his mom for approval. Instead, he met a familiar, stern look. He suddenly remembered his premonition of a long, painful talk.

Throwing the car into drive, Mrs. Inuzuka cleared her throat. "All right, Kiba. Let me tell you about the birds and the bees…"

XXXXX

Iruka Umino rolled around groggily in bed, half-awake. It had been an exhausting night with Kakashi, and the brunet was not quite ready to face the day. He was sore and physically drained – the thought of preparing for Christmas festivities only exhausted him further.

Rolling over toe face his lover, Iruka found Kakashi was long gone, with only a few discarded, scarlet sheets lying on his side of the bed. Frowning, the teacher squinted at the red numbers of Kakashi's digital clock on the bed stand, murmuring, "What time is it, anyway?"

As the blurry numbers became clear, Iruka could clearly see that it was 11:30 AM. Wide-eyed, he sat up and threw off the sheets. He was late – late on _Christmas_. They had so many preparations to make, stockings to open, dinner to prepare…

Sniffing the air curiously, Iruka's panic worsened. He still reeked of sweat and… 'love.' He had to take a shower, and fast.

Hopping out of bed, the naked brunet streaked towards the master bathroom, slamming the door shut behind him. Stepping inside the shower, he turned the water on and let out a yelp as the first bitter cold drops hit his bare skin. Moments later, the water warmed up, and Iruka took in a deep breath as the steam filled the room.

Water running down his hair, Iruka turned and stared out through the glass at the bathroom. It was a nicely sized bathroom, with white tile, a separate, circular bath, and an enormous mirror before the twin sinks. The shower itself sat in the back corner, a large rectangular section surrounded by glass. Iruka felt somewhat exposed as he washed off, knowing that anyone could walk in and see him, unobscured, but the warm water caressing his back eased away his concerns. Turning around, he faced the showerhead and grabbed a bar of soap, which he began to rub against his chest, working up a modest lather.

Lost in the roar of the rushing water, Iruka never even heard the bathroom door open behind him. In fact, he wasn't even aware that there was anyone else in the room until he felt a tap on his shoulder, at which point the soap slipped out of his hand and flew into the air.

"Sorry. Didn't mean to scare you," a soft voice said, sliding a hand down Iruka's shoulder to his chest.

"Geez, Kakashi… don't do that to me," Iruka replied without even looking at the other man, his heart racing.

"Here… I think you dropped this," Kakashi said, picking up the soap from the floor. "I was wondering when you'd wake up."

"Thanks." Iruka grabbed the soap and continued lathering up, working around Kakashi's hand. "You wore me right out last night."

"You certainly seemed to enjoy it."

Iruka took a sharp breath as he felt Kakashi's other hand slide down towards his butt. "Kakashi! Not now – what if the boys come looking for us?"

"They're not here," Kakashi answered with a naughty smile, his fingers slipping down lower. "They left before I was even up."

"Aren't you concerned? Where did they go?"

"I think we both know the answer to that, Iruka," the silver-haired man whispered, his other hand massaging his lover's chest. "They'll be occupied for a little while. I say we do the same…"

"But…" Iruka began, only to gasp as he felt Kakashi's fingers go to work. "K-Kakashi! Wait!"

"What is it?" the other man asked, resting his hand on Iruka's shoulder. "Still sore?"

"Well, yes… I just need a minute or two, how about that?" Iruka asked, the soap once again slipping from his hands.

"That works for me," Kakashi concluded, removing his hand from his lover's backside and instead pulling him into an embrace. "I wanted a chance to ask you something, anyway."

"What do you mean?"

Kakashi frowned, thinking for a moment as the hot water fell on the couple. "Let me see… how should I put this? We've been together for a few months now, right?"

"Right…"

"And your lease is up on your apartment at the end of the month…"

"Yes… where are you going with this, Kakashi?" Iruka asked, turning his head to stare the other man in the eye.

"Well, I was wondering how you'd feel about moving in with us," the silver-haired man asked with a slight blush. "I mean… you're already here a few nights a week. Sasuke's adjusted to you. I asked him how he'd feel, and he said he'd be okay with it. He wants us to be happy. So, if you want to…"

Iruka hesitated. "I don't know… won't it be a bit weird? That means we'd all be living together in the summer, once Naruto's lease on his apartment ends. It just seems… odd."

"Oh, I know. Do we really want to be a normal family, though? Normal's boring – we can be the strange family down the street, two couples living under one roof. Yeah, it'll probably be a bit awkward, but we'll be together, right?"

Again, Iruka was silent. He knew what Kakashi was saying was true, but he was afraid of what might happen. In his head, he tallied up all the things that could go wrong. What if Naruto and Sasuke broke up? Then they'd be forced to live under the same roof as exes… that wouldn't be pretty. And what if he broke up with Kakashi – they'd have to move and split Naruto and Sasuke apart, which wouldn't be fair either. If they all stayed together, though…

"We'd be happy…" Iruka whispered, causing Kakashi to raise an eyebrow in confusion.

"So… is that a yes?"

Glancing back over his shoulder, Iruka laughed. "Well, as long as I don't have to deal with that crazy landlady again…"

"That's the spirit," Kakashi replied, planting a kiss on his lover's cheek. "Now, what do you say we get down to business, eh? Are you up for round two?"

Shutting off the water, Iruka nodded. "I'd like that."

XXXXX

"It's fucking freezing out here."

No sooner had the words left Sasuke's lips than Naruto decided to end his complaints immediately with a warm, generous kiss. It caught the Uchiha off guarding, leaving him momentarily speechless when Naruto pulled back. The blond smirked. "Better?"

Sasuke nodded dumbly before apparently recalling his earlier indignation. "I still don't understand why you brought us out here," he said sourly, rubbing his gloved hands together for warmth.

Naruto considered this for a moment as he gazed out at the scene around them. They were standing on their bridge in Konoha Park, surrounded by a blanket of snow and barren trees. It amazed Naruto what a difference a month could make – in only a few weeks the park had gone from a carnival of colored leaves, brimming with life, to a seemingly desolate white landscape. The only sign of life in the entire area were his and Sasuke's foggy breaths, with their footprints being the only flaws in the ocean of snow.

Of course, that was exactly why Naruto had chosen to come to the park in the first place, so they could have peace and privacy to exchange their gifts. Even he had to admit that it was not his most well thought-out plan, however – before his kiss with Sasuke, he, too, felt as if his toes would break off at any moment.

_Amazing what a little intimacy can do to warm you up…_

"I thought this would be special," Naruto finally answered, holding out his purple gift bag. "Here. Merry Christmas, Sasuke."

Naruto realized they must've looked quite strange, standing on the bridge with their presents, clad in their winter garb. All wrapped up in their black jackets, hats, and scarves, the couple could barely see each other's faces – just a small circle of bare flesh around their eyes, noses, and mouths. Still, Naruto could see Sasuke's frosty attitude melt away as he graciously accepted the gift. The blond grinned.

"Well, go on – open it!"

Nodding, Sasuke dug inside the tissue paper until his hand came into contact with several figurines, which he pulled forth one by one, setting them up in a row on the bridge's railing. A scarecrow, a dolphin, a fox, and a ninja wielding a katana – Sasuke studied them all for a moment with a frown before reaching a conclusion.

"I don't get it."

"They're us," Naruto explained, pointing to each figurine as he elaborated. "Kakashi's the scarecrow, Iruka's the dolphin – because of their names, of course. I'm the fox, for obvious reasons, and you're the ninja because of your sword."

Sasuke scratched his head, a slight smile crossing his frigid lips. "Where'd you find them all?"

"Oh, from one of those quarter vending machines at the grocery store. Cost me, like, $10 to get them all," Naruto said, brushing his thumb against his note with a hint of pride. "So… do you like it?"

_Please say yes, please say yes, please say yes…_

"They're great," Sasuke said before shaking his head amusedly. "Though I just have to wonder what happened to the other 36 figurines you bought…"

"Oh, they're all in a bag in my room," Naruto responded somewhat embarrassedly.

_Along with a few other supplies… lube… condoms…_

It was a secret Naruto had been keeping for several weeks now. Maybe it was just wishful thinking, or maybe it was due to hormonal lust, but somehow Naruto had gotten the idea in his head that he and Sasuke were ready to give their sex life another go. Of course, he wasn't about to tell Sasuke that he had replaced the supplies he had give (quite awkwardly) to Gaara after their first disastrous attempt. He was prepared – all he had to do now was wait for Sasuke to give the word. He didn't want to do anything unless Sasuke was ready as well, though he hoped that time was sooner rather than later.

"Now for your present," Sasuke announced, jarring Naruto out of his thoughts. He held out a glossy, black gift bag with tissue paper bursting from the top and dropped it into the blond's outstretched hands.

Eagerly, Naruto seized the tissue paper and began to sift through the bag, searching for the gift within. It was only a matter of seconds before he struck gold and pulled out…

"A leaf?" Naruto asked, examining the brown, crunchy piece of foliage.

"There's more to it than that. Keep digging," Sasuke chided, clearly having noticed Naruto's perplexed expression.

Following his boyfriend's orders, Naruto shoved his hand back into the bag and continued to pull out one bizarre item after another. A smooth stone, a luffa, a pair of tiny, orange briefs, a Best of Simon and Garfunkel CD, and a sealed envelope – Naruto felt more confused than ever, staring at the collection before him. He turned to the Uchiha for an explanation.

"They're symbolic of all the places we've been and the encounters we've had in the past few months," the raven-haired teen said, holding up the rounded stone. "I picked this up from the shore beneath the bridge here. I went on a special trip to Lake Konoha to get that leaf from the forest."

"Oh, you mean where we went streaking."

"Involuntarily, yes," Sasuke responded with a laugh. "The CD is from the fist time I showed you my room… and we listened to the music, lying next to each other on my bed…"

"The luffa?"

"From our little encounter in the shower at that party. It was either that or a shower cap – I made a decision, and I'm sticking to it."

"Okay… but what about these?" Naruto asked, stretching the waistband of the skimpy, orange briefs.

"They're supposed to be like the undies I borrowed from you… when I ran off with O," Sasuke explained, his cheeks reddening noticeably. "You'd be surprised how hard it is to find orange underwear."

"Tell me about it," Naruto muttered. He paused as it dawned on him just _why_ his boyfriend was blushing. A mischievous smile crossed his lips.

_Hmm… I wonder…_

"I take it you'd like to see me in these sometime… is that right?" Naruto asked, leaning towards the other teen seductively. "I didn't realize you had an underwear fetish, Sasuke…"

"J-just open the card!" Sasuke stammered, flushing with humiliation as he took a few steps back.

Naruto ignored the Uchiha's request and instead inched closer, his eyes fixed upon him in an enticing stare. "You want me to model them for you later? Do a little striptease? Because I'd be more than happy to oblige… especially if it gets you all hot and bothered…"

At a loss for words, Sasuke only watched as Naruto ran a finger slowly down his chest. Unless Naruto was mistaken, this resulted in a noticeable bulge in the other teen's pants. He grinned.

_Mission accomplished…_

"But first, maybe I'll take your advice and look at your card," Naruto said, stepping back from his boyfriend with a look of satisfaction as he unsealed the envelope. As soon as he saw what was written, however, the blond froze entirely. Inside were two words, hand-written, on a plain piece of paper: 'I'm ready.'

For what felt like an eternity, Naruto couldn't seem to form words. It was as if the sight of that simple message had fried his brain – the neurons were struggling to fire off signals, his entire brain practically screaming 'yes,' but focusing too much on that surge of elation to perform the basic function of speech.

"Sa-sasuke… are you sure?" Naruto asked, finally looking up from the card. He found the Uchiha smiling softly, a small cloud of breath leaking from his mouth.

"Yeah… I'm sure this time."

"But… when?"

"Right now," Sasuke responded, seizing Naruto's wrist. "Kiba's gone for the holiday. We'll have your apartment to ourselves…"

"You're really sure, though? Positive?" Naruto asked he and the raven-haired teen began trudging through the snow towards the park entrance.

"If I have to tell you again, I'll strip you right now. Now let's go."

As much fun as that sounded, Naruto wanted to avoid getting frostbite on his family jewels, and instead decided to trust in Sasuke. If he said he was ready, then Naruto had no choice but to believe him. There was no pressure this time – Naruto hadn't initiated it like he had before. It just happened that this time, they both desperately wanted the same thing.

_Yeah… definitely raging teenage hormones…_

Considering it was Christmas morning, there was little traffic for Naruto and Sasuke to avoid on the way back to the blond's apartment. Everyone was either at church, in bed, or opening gifts by their trees. Most shops were closed, save for a grocery store they passed where customers were desperately searching for a turkey they had neglected to purchase for their Christmas dinners.

Thus, all in all, it only took the duo between five and ten minutes to reach the apartment, their speed increasing as they drew nearer to their destination. By the time they were rushing up the metal stairway of the apartment complex, they both were hurriedly stripping off their outer layer of clothing and carrying them in a bundle under their arms, along with their respective gift bags. Outside his door, Naruto fumbled briefly with his keys, his hands shaking with anticipation as he turned the lock.

"Well, here we a–" Naruto said, turning as he stepped inside, only to be cut off as Sasuke tackled him to the floor. Grateful that he had the soft pile of jackets and other winter clothing to land on, the blond had no time to register what exactly was going on. He heard the door slam shut, he felt the pressure of Sasuke's body atop his own, and he could taste that wonderful, familiar flavor of his boyfriend's lips as they went to work.

"Naruto… do you have any idea how long I've wanted to do this?" Sasuke asked between kisses, his breaths as short as possible.

"I'm getting an idea," Naruto replied, kicking off his shoes as he squirmed on the floor. He wasn't used to this aggressive side of Sasuke – the desperation, the hunger, the passion. Usually it felt as though the Uchiha was reluctant in their intimacy. He clearly enjoyed it, but he seemed to enjoy it despite his wishes. Now, as the Uchiha straddled him, Naruto realized that he had just been holding back. It was a continuation of Sasuke's fear – that if he became too involved, he'd only risk losing someone he cared about. That thought seemed to have been erased entirely, replaced only by a burning desire.

And Naruto found it as sexy as hell.

Wrapping his arms around Sasuke's back, Naruto pulled his boyfriend's head in closer to the kiss with one hand while slipping the other up his shirt. Taking in similarly short breaths, Naruto took in the scent of the other teen – it was a mild odor, but to him, it was unmistakable. That hint of sweat, the kind that Naruto could smell on the other when they were in the locker room after gym class – it was intoxicating.

Moaning, Naruto let his tongue slip into the other's mouth, meeting Sasuke's somewhere in the middle. Meanwhile, his hand gently pulled Sasuke shirt north, exposing more of the Uchiha's bare back, which Naruto caressed gently, feeling every inch as if he were reading Braille. Lost in these sensations, the blond barely realized what Sasuke's own hands were up to until he felt one snake down the front of his shorts and grab him down below.

"Sasuke!" Naruto sputtered suddenly, pulling out of the kiss abruptly.

"What?" Sasuke asked, looking quite frustrated.

"Not here… head to the bedroom. I'll be there in a second."

Clearly disappointed, the Uchiha rose to his feet and nodded. "All right… don't keep me waiting too long."

Pressing a hand to his chest, Naruto stared directly into the other's eyes. "I promise."

Slinking off around the corner to the hallway, Sasuke disappeared from view as Naruto picked himself off the floor. He dug around in the pile of clothes for a moment until he found the black gift bag he'd received only a few minutes before. Once he heard the bedroom door close shut, Naruto slipped his hand inside and pulled out the orange briefs with a grin.

_Oh, he's gonna love this…_

Hurriedly, Naruto stripped off his festive, green and red sweatshirt, yanking it over his head, and unceremoniously dropped his blue jeans. Standing in his candy cane patterned boxers, the blond readied his new underwear, testing the waistband once more with a quick stretch.

_It's awfully small… am I even gonna fit into these?_

With a shrug of his shoulders, Naruto slipped off his boxers and kicked them off to the side before stepping into the bikini briefs. To his surprise, they fit far better than he thought, stretching to contour perfectly with his shape. Glancing down at himself, he wondered just how he looked in them – he hoped as sexy as Sasuke undoubtedly imagined. There was no real way to tell from his vantage point, though he certainly felt good in them.

Taking a deep breath, Naruto turned the corner. There was only one way to tell if the look worked for him, and that was to show it off. Strutting down the hallway, Naruto paused outside his bedroom and pressed his ear to the door. He could hear the springs on his mattress squeaking inside – a clear sign that Sasuke was waiting quite impatiently for the blond's return.

"Ready, Sasuke?"

"Yes! What's taking so…"

Sasuke trailed off as Naruto pushed open the door, revealing him in his new attire. Though he couldn't be sure, the vulpine boy was relatively sure he saw a drop of drool leak from the corner of Sasuke's mouth. Placing his hands on his hips, Naruto gyrated slowly and smirked.

"Well? What do you think?"

"They're… umm… _hot_," Sasuke responded, tantalized by the sight. "Could you… turn around?"

"Of course," Naruto replied as he spun around, revealing his barely clad butt to the teen. He pretended to pick something off the ground, sticking his rump up in the air. "How's that?"

Drooling more noticeably now, Sasuke wiped his mouth with his sleeve and beckoned Naruto with his finger. "Enough teasing me… get over here."

Without a word, Naruto rushed across the room and leaped onto the bed, causing it to squeak loudly as he landed beside his boyfriend. There, Naruto straddled the Uchiha and leaned forward for a kiss. Again, the couple explored each other aggressively, using their mouths and hands to feel and taste the other thoroughly. Though the snow fell outside, they felt only heat inside Naruto's bedroom, with the blond's mostly bare body coated in a thin sheen of sweat.

"Naruto, my shirt," Sasuke said, pulling ever so briefly out of the kiss.

Dividing his focus between his active lips and his hands, Naruto gradually slid Sasuke's shirt further north, until it was rubbing against their chins. He then backed out of the kiss and yanked it off entirely, dropping it to the side of the bed. Sitting for a moment on the Uchiha's lap, Naruto gazed down at his boyfriend's bare torso, studying his flat stomach, lithe form, and fair skin.

"Have I ever told you you're beautiful?" Naruto asked, lying down for another kiss.

"I'll be sure to add it to the list next to 'hot, sexy, and an ass,'" Sasuke replied wryly before meeting the other's lips.

While the boyfriends explored each other's mouths extensively, Naruto's hands went to work on Sasuke's black pants, gradually undoing the top button and, eventually, lowering the zipper. As he shimmied the pants free from Sasuke and added them to the growing pile on the floor, he felt Sasuke's own hands slide down the back of his briefs, clamping firmly around the blond's butt.

"You really like my ass, don't you?" Naruto asked with a chuckle, to which Sasuke replied with another squeeze. "Well… I have to wonder what I'm missing. Turn over real quick."

Naruto stepped off the bed and watched as a blushing Sasuke rolled onto his stomach, watching his blue boxers intently. Once the Uchiha was settled, Naruto leaned forward and seized the legs of the teen's boxers before yanking them off in one fluid motion.

"Hey!"

"Sorry. Guess I should've warned you," Naruto said, resting his knees on the ground. He stared at the Uchiha's bare butt before him and licked his lips, leaning closer to the smooth mounds. "Now, stay still…"

"Naruto? What are you, ooohh?"

Struggling not to laugh at his boyfriend's surprised cry, Naruto pressed his face against Sasuke's posterior and began to tickle it gently with his tongue. It was a spur of the moment decision, based on something he had seen in a porno earlier that year, and he could not believe he was actually going through with it. He was more nervous about messing it up and making a fool of himself than anything else, but the intense moans of satisfaction told him that wasn't the case.

"Oh… Naruto… right there…" Sasuke said, his entire body shuddering with another wave of pleasure.

Naruto could only keep it going for a minute or two, but apparently that was enough. When he stood back up and asked Sasuke to roll back over, the Uchiha was hard and ready, though his cheeks had turned a deep shade of ready.

"Where'd you learn to do that?"

"Umm… I'd rather not say," Naruto responded, scratching his head sheepishly. He then realized that his briefs felt unusually tight. A quick glance down revealed why – Sasuke wasn't the only one who was visibly excited.

"Want me to do something about that?" Sasuke asked, staring at the tenting briefs.

"L-like what?"

Sasuke slid over and patted next to him on the bed. Silently, Naruto plopped down beside him, his legs hanging over the edge, and stared at his boyfriend in confusion. Pressing a finger to the blond's lips, Sasuke slowly slid the front of Naruto's underwear down, until his erection sprang into view. Lowering his head, the Uchiha placed a hand on the blond's member and began to stroke up and down slowly and deeply.

Naruto bit his lip and moaned, throwing his head back as he felt Sasuke's magic fingers go to work. It was almost overwhelming, the pleasure, and little did he know that it was just getting started. Gradually, Sasuke's hand sped up, giving swifter and swifter strokes, causing Naruto to breathe quickly and slowly slide back and forth against the bedspread.

Then he felt Sasuke's tongue.

_Oh my… is he…?_

Cracking an eye open, Naruto glanced down and confirmed his suspicions. Sasuke had removed his hand from the blond's shaft, replacing it with his mouth. He imagined this was the Uchiha's way of paying him back for his own tongue exploration – and, needless to say, Naruto accepted it gladly.

His eyes closed, Naruto moaned quietly as he felt Sasuke's mouth slide up and down, his tongue tickling the sensitive skin. It was a wonderful, albeit strange, sensation, and it only grew more pleasurable as Sasuke's free fingers began to fondle his balls. At that point, it simply became too much, and Naruto had to tap on the Uchiha's shoulder hurriedly as he let out another ecstatic groan.

Releasing the blond, Sasuke sat up and gave his boyfriend a concerned look. "What is it?"

"I… I was about to…" Naruto said, glancing down at his twitching member.

"Ah," Sasuke said with a look of understanding. "Then… shall we…?"

Naruto nodded. "Just give me a second here."

Sliding off the bed, Naruto pulled out the bag from underneath and, along with it, the necessary supplies. This time, he only had a single box of condoms, making his choice much easier. Taking out a single packet, he opened it with his teeth and slid the rubber on with only some difficulty.

_Practice makes perfect, I guess…_

As for the bottle of Astroglide, Naruto poured an excessive amount into his hand, applying some of it to himself while using the remainder on Sasuke, making sure that both his groin and his back were sufficiently coated. Of course, it was still far more than was needed, but Naruto figured it was better to use too much than too little. He could always wash the sheets, as he undoubtedly would have to the next day.

"How's that?" Naruto asked as he hovered over his boyfriend, rubbing the lubricant in thoroughly around his butt.

"Good enough, I think," Sasuke responded with a slight blush. "Feels good, at least."

"Okay… I'm going to slip one in, then. Ready?"

"Ready."

On Sasuke's word, Naruto pushed one of his fingers inside – slowly enough for the Uchiha to adjust. He then began to slide it back and forth, gradually loosening up his boyfriend, all while suckling on his nipple. Bucking his hips slightly, Sasuke licked his lips and let out a euphoric sigh. After a minute or so, Naruto added a second finger, causing Sasuke to grunt in a mixture of pain and pleasure.

"Too much?" the blond asked, looking up from the Uchiha's chest.

"No… you're fine…"

Satisfied, Naruto returned to work, sticking out his tongue in concentration as he continued to rub his fingers inside his boyfriend. Once he was sure Sasuke was ready, he withdrew them and positioned himself between the other teen's legs.

"You're sure about this?" Naruto asked, feeling the warmth of Sasuke's legs entwined with his own.

"What did I tell you about that?" Sasuke responded with a smirk. "I'm ready, Naruto."

"All right, then…"

Gently, Naruto slid inside his boyfriend, a wave of pleasure rippling through him as he felt the tight pressure on his member. Closing his eyes and taking deep breaths, Naruto thrust back and forth in long, fluid motions, listening intently to the Uchiha's grunts. Resting his arms on either side of Sasuke, Naruto continued at a cautious pace, trying his best to sense any discomfort or unease in his partner.

"Naruto!" Sasuke said sharply, causing the blond to open his eyes in surprise.

_I'm not hurting him, am I? He'd tell me if I was… at least I think he would…_

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine – just hurry up and fuck me already," the Uchiha commanded before letting out a moan.

Naruto didn't need to be told twice. Immediately he picked up the pace, thrusting faster until both he and Sasuke were dripping with sweat. Their grunts filled the room along with the squeaking of the mattress, neither one able to say anything else as they focused one the task at hand.

_This is what Sasuke wants. He's not afraid this time… he wants this… so we can show our love for each other…_

He felt all the sensations as he knelt there on the bed, straddling the Uchiha. He could feel Sasuke's legs tighten around his own, the squeeze as his free hand clamped down on Naruto's butt, the warming sensation of being inside the Uchiha – it was all wonderful, hot, and dirty. He could feel all of Sasuke's movements, the slight adjustments as he tried to get comfortable, the tightening and loosening of his insides as he fought the urge to clamp up with every surge of pleasure.

His face red, Naruto cracked open an eye to get a look at his boyfriend. There, he found Sasuke with his head resting back on the sheets, his eyes closed, his face showing that strange combination of pain and ecstasy. A glance further down showed that he was enjoying it far more than his face let on – he was sporting quite an impressive erection, his hand stroking it rapidly.

"Sasuke… are you–"

"YES!" Sasuke ejaculated in a voice far louder than either he or Naruto expected.

At that point, Sasuke's entire body seemed to tighten at once, closing in around Naruto as he shuddered. Watching from above, the blond watched his boyfriend twitch and throb as love squirted onto his bare stomach and melded with the sweat. The sight was all Naruto needed for his own release, causing him to let out a burst of short, loudening moans as he gave a final thrust.

They paused in that position for some time, staring at each other as they struggled to catch their breath. Neither one said a word. Their actions spoke for themselves. They were both exhausted, drained of other fluids than just sweat – Naruto had forgotten what a workout sex could be.

After that extended period of quiet awe, the teens lunged at each other with their lips, meeting a foot or so off the bed with an intense kiss. They pressed against each other, hungry and yearning, their hands wrapped around their bodies in a powerful embrace.

They remained like that for some time – Naruto lost track, his brain clouded by the afterglow. When they finally pulled out of the kiss, though, they smiled at each other, their faces mere inches from each other. As Naruto noticed, there was no sarcasm behind Sasuke's grin, no insincerity – it was the happiest the blond had ever seen him, and it made his heart swell with joy.

"I love you, Naruto," Sasuke finally said, his voice resolute.

Naruto's smile widened, a feat he thought impossible at that moment. "I love you, Sasuke."

They lay in bed for a while afterwards, draped in the sheets as their sweat dried and their bodies cooled, and not once did Naruto worry about Sasuke leaving. Somehow, he was sure Sasuke felt the same way – at that moment, they were one, bound to each other for eternity, and that was all that mattered.

* * *

And there you have it! Everyone has an enjoyable Christmas, and Naruto and Sasuke give their sex life another go. Hopefully you enjoyed this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it. We're nearing the end now - only a few chapters left to go. Next time, expect to learn more about Kiba's date with Hinata, along with an unexpected twist... Until then, thank you all for reading, and remember to review!


	53. A Soldier Cleans and Polishes a Gun

Hello, dear readers. This is an incredibly short chapter - I was originally going to combine it with the next one, but I think they'd work better on their own. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this taste of what's to come, and I promise to have the next chapter up before Thanksgiving. Now, on with the chapter!

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53. A Soldier Cleans and Polishes a Gun

Kiba was panicking – that much Naruto could tell as he entered the apartment when he heard the Inzuka call out to him. It was the first Friday after their winter break, and the blond was well aware of Kiba's impending date. As he turned the corner to the dog-boy's room, however, he was not prepared for the sight that awaited him.

There stood Kiba, wearing what appeared to be the top-half of a suit. It was a black jacket with a pink shirt, paired with a lime green tie – Naruto thought it looked like a pig vomiting. He held a pair of navy pants in one hand and a pair of pinstriped pants in the other, wearing neither. Below the waist, he wore only some red briefs and black socks, giving him quite a comical appearance. Naruto simply shook his head at the sight.

"What's the matter, Kiba?"

"I need help, Naruto," the Inuzuka said, holding up the two pairs of pants. "Which ones go better with this suit? I thought I had black pants, but I can't find them, and this is the only jacket I have and I don't want to look bad for this first date because she's from the Hyuuga family and they're used to class and…"

"Slow down, there! Where exactly are you two going, anyway?" Naruto said, waving a hand for his roommate's silence.

"Umm… she wanted to go somewhere simple…" Kiba replied, his cheeks coloring slightly.

"Where, Kiba?"

"Ichiraku…" the dog-boy admitted with a sigh.

"You're going to a ramen stand for a date, and you're planning on wearing a suit? Doesn't that seem a bit excessive?" the blond asked, shooting the other teen a skeptical look.

"Well… yeah… but what if this is just a test? Maybe she wants to see whether I'll dress up even _if_ it's just a ramen stand, and if I don't do that then she'll dump me on the spot…"

"Look, Kiba, she's not going to dump you because of something like that. If anything it would be because you blinded her with your shirt there," Naruto said, pointing at the neon pink garment.

Kiba glanced down at his front and frowned. "Too much?"

"Definitely. You might want to pick out some tamer undies, too… just in case she gets the chance to see them…"

The Inuzuka's face turned almost as red as his briefs. "W-what? No! That's not gonna happen! Besides, these are my lucky undies…"

Naruto turned his head to the side to offer his friend some privacy as he began unbuttoning his shirt. "Well, whatever makes you more comfortable, I guess. I'll tell you one thing, she really won't want to go out with you again if you're a sweaty mess tonight."

Stripping off the shirt, Kiba tossed it to the side of the room, where it landed atop a startled Akamaru. "I can't help it! I haven't been this nervous before in my life! There are so many things that could go wrong… what if I say something stupid?"

"Like you almost certainly will," the blond said, scratching the back of his head. "You just have to take your time. Don't respond too quickly – think things through so you don't make any mistakes."

"That's easy for you to say – you're not the one going out on a date. You know what I'm like when I'm nervous… I just keep talking until I've shoved my foot so far into my mouth that it comes out the other end."

"Thanks for that mental image, there," Naruto replied, shuddering. He knew Kiba was right, though: he really did have a tendency to talk too much when he was nervous.

The blond could remember when their landlady had accused them of keeping a dog in the apartment, which was strictly against the rules. Kiba had pretended to hate dogs altogether, saying that they gave him allergies, despite the obvious dog hair clinging to his shirt. Fortunately, Naruto had been there to cover for him, claiming the hair had come from their friend's dog earlier that day.

That had been a relatively minor situation, too – Naruto could only imagine what Kiba might say if he were truly nervous, as he undoubtedly would be on his date. What he really needed was a wingman to bail him out, should the situation arise. It would be awkward if Naruto just tagged along, though – there had to be another way.

Suddenly, it came to him. A broad grin crossed his face. "I know! What if Sasuke and I come along? We could make it a double date!"

Slipping on a nice, long-sleeved black shirt, Kiba looked up to Naruto with an expression of gratitude. "Are you serious? That'd be great!"

"I mean, I'd have to give him a call first, but I doubt he'd mind. We've been meaning to go out for a while now, but we just haven't had the chance," Naruto said, reaching into his pocket for his cell phone. "Let me call him real quick."

Nodding, Kiba finished getting dressed while the blond dialed. With the phone held to his ear, Naruto listened to it ring, waiting for his boyfriend to pick up. When Sasuke finally picked up, he sounded mildly irritated.

"Naruto! Where are you?"

"Umm… I'm home…"

"Don't you remember what today is?" Sasuke asked, his voice growing more aggravated.

"Friday, of course. Why? What's up?" Naruto asked, scratching his cheek in confusion.

"You're supposed to be helping Iruka move in today!" The Uchiha snapped, forcing Naruto to hold the phone away from his ear.

"Oh… of course. All the boxes are there and everything?"

"_Yes._ Get your butt over here."

Naruto rolled his eyes. "Well, as much fun as that sounds, I have a better idea. Why don't _you_ come over here so we can go out on a date?"

A pause. "You're joking, right? You want to just ditch our dads and go out?"

"Is that a problem?" the blond asked with a mischievous smirk.

Sasuke's voice lowered to a whisper. "Not at all. Just give me a few minutes – I'll have to find a way to sneak out without them noticing."

"Great. I'll meet you here in a few, then," Naruto said before clamping the phone shut. Looking up, he found Kiba zipping up the fly of his jeans, his ensemble complete.

"Well? Any luck?" the Inuzuka asked, scooping up Akamaru from beneath his discarded shirt.

"He's up for it. He'll be here as soon as he can," Naruto responded, shoving the phone into his pocket. He then glanced down at his own attire and realized his ripped jeans and his 'I'm a ninja – you can't see me' t-shirt would not suffice. "Guess I'd better get dressed too."

Hurrying into his own bedroom, Naruto rifled through his drawers until he found what he considered suitable date attire. Essentially, he just copied his flatmate's outfit, slipping on a black dress shirt with some dark jeans. He stood before the mirror for a moment, making last minute adjustments to his collar until he was completely satisfied.

_Lookin' good, Naruto. Lookin' good…_

Stepping back out into the hallway, Naruto passed by the bathroom where Kiba was busy flossing his teeth for the fifth time that afternoon, as if he were somehow trying to make his mouth radiant in only a few hours. Chuckling, the blond only shook his head and passed by on his way to the living room, where he plopped down on the couch to wait. It was close to fifteen minutes before he heard a knock on the door, which he was all-too eager to answer. Throwing the door open, he found a sharply dressed Sasuke standing outside with a smile.

"Hiya," Naruto said, grinning as he quickly waved his hand.

"So, are we going or what?" Sasuke asked, glancing down at his watch. "We want to beat the dinner rush."

"Yeah, I'm ready to go whenever. We just have to wait for Kiba."

Sasuke's eyes narrowed as he cocked his head to the side. "Kiba's coming along?"

Naruto quickly realized that he'd omitted a key detail. He grimaced. "Umm… yeah… you see, he was really nervous about his date with Hinata tonight, so I _kinda _volunteered for us to tag along."

"We're their chaperones?" Sasuke exclaimed, outraged.

"No! It's just a double date, and I'm there to bail Kiba out if he says something stupid!" the blond insisted, waving his hands defensively.

Sasuke slapped a hand to his forehead and sighed. "All right… but if anything goes wrong, I'm blaming you."

"And I'll take it gladly," Naruto concluded just as Kiba came up behind him.

"So… are we ready to go?" the dog-boy asked, sweat forming on his brow.

"We're meeting her at the restaurant, I take it?" Sasuke asked, turning his head to mask his ire.

"Yeah – I told her I'd be there around five o'clock. What time is it now?"

"Five fifteen," Sasuke responded dryly.

Kiba's eyes widened. "Shit! Oh, shit… we gotta hurry!"

Without a word, the Inuzuka darted past Naruto and Sasuke, nearly slipping on the icy path as he turned the corner towards the stairs. Naruto looked to his boyfriend – they shrugged in unison before racing after their nervous-wreck of a friend.

Already, their date was off to a wonderful start.

XXXXX

"Tonight's the night, Kisame."

"Already? You're awfully impatient, aren't you? I thought you were more reserved like your brother…"

"Sasuke's equally impatient when it comes to important matters. It has to be tonight: the warden's on vacation for the new year, and I noticed the guard sneaking some alcohol earlier – obviously he wants to party as well. It's the perfect opportunity – who's to say when we'll get another chance."

"I like the way you think, Itachi."

"You still have it, don't you? The syringe?"

"It was a pain hiding it from the guards this whole time, but I got it," Kisame said, reaching into his orange prison jumpsuit. He tossed the tiny needle to his cellmate, who snatched it out of the air.

Itachi stared at the needle for a moment, eyeing the label carefully. "Sharingan… so much was wasted for this…"

"Are you really gonna use it?"

"I have no choice – I have to find Sasuke," Itachi said, raising the syringe to his neck. He took a deep breath and plunged it in, injecting the reddish fluid.

Immediately, Itachi fell to the floor, letting out an agonized scream. Staring up at Kisame's black eyes, he could see the glossy reflection of his own. Three dots, not unlike pupils, had formed in his red irises. His lips curled into a smile of satisfaction.

The Sharingan Project had succeeded.

* * *

Dun-dun-dunnnn! What is Itachi planning? How will Kiba's date go? But, seriously, what is Itachi planning? Find out next time (which, as I said, will be soon!) Thanks for reading, and remember: review!


	54. Twitching Like a Finger

As promised, here's the new chapter in record time! Of course, it's also quite short, but hey, that makes it about the length of a regular update then, right? Anyway, thank you all for reading this far, and enjoy! The end is near...

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54. Twitching Like a Finger…

Sasuke was trying his best not to laugh – really, he was – and, considering how Kiba's date had been going thus far, he thought hew as doing a pretty good job. They were all seated in a row at the Ichiraku ramen stand, with Sasuke sitting at one end and Hinata at the other. By the time they had reached the restaurant, it was already 5:20, though Hinata had not minded waiting. In fact, when they found her standing out in the snow in her purple fleece jacket and white boots, Sasuke thought she looked relieved, not angry.

That was Kiba's only lucky break so far that evening, however. In only half an hour, he had managed to spill ramen on his lap, split open the seat of his pants (which apparently were two sizes too small), and, most recently, accidentally elbow Hinata in the face.

Truly, it was turning into an absolute train wreck.

Glancing over at Kiba, Sasuke found him fussing over Hinata and her red cheek, for once not caused by excessive blushing. Naruto, meanwhile, was trying his best to salvage the date with some amusing anecdotes.

"Don't worry, Hinata – Kiba only does that to people he likes. I remember a few years ago we were playing soccer, and he tried to head the ball, but hit me in the face instead. I had a bloody nose, and we were both stunned for a minute or two," the blond said with a nervous laugh.

"I-is that true, Kiba?" Hinata asked, politely brushing the dog-boy's hand from her cheek.

Kiba reddened. "Yeah… I can get a bit clumsy when I get excited about something…"

Hinata flushed, and Sasuke was once again forced to hold back his laughter.

_Not a bad line, Kiba… maybe you can pull this off after all…_

"How's your ramen?" Kiba asked, hurriedly changing the subject.

"It's delicious! It's been so long since I had any," Hinata replied before scanning the room, observing the red stools, the worn countertop, and the modest, vaguely Japanese décor. "How did you even find this place? It's so small… I don't think I've ever even noticed it before…"

"I have to give Naruto credit for that one," Kiba confessed, giving the blond a nod. "He made it his mission to find the best ramen shop in town freshman year. Not that there were that many to choose from…"

"This was the winner by a long shot," Naruto interrupted, beaming with excitement. "It's where Sasuke and I went on our first date a few months ago."

"It wasn't really a date," Sasuke countered, rolling his eyes.

"Well, it sorta is now, right? Our first meal together, or something like that…"

"Umm…" Hinata piped up quietly, almost like a mouse. "Y-you two are… boyfriends?"

Sasuke and Naruto stared at the Hyuuga for a moment, both realizing quite suddenly the secret they had so casually revealed. Sasuke felt a twinge of panic and could see the same look reflected in his boyfriend's eyes. Then, just as quickly, he felt at ease, as if a burden had been lifted from his shoulders. It didn't _matter_ if Hinata knew, or if anyone else did: he and Naruto were in love. They had nothing left to hide.

"As a matter of fact, we are," Sasuke finally said with a smile. Then, to prove his point, he leaned over and planted a kiss on Naruto's lips, which the blond more than willingly accepted.

"I… I had a feeling," Hinata concluded as the couple backed out of the brief smooch. Sasuke shot here a surprised glance, startling her. "I-I mean, the way you two were always together… that's what the rumor was, at least…"

"Who's been saying that?" Naruto asked with a bitter tone. Evidently he and Sasuke suspected the same person: Sakura Haruna.

Hinata pursed her lips in thought. "Hmm… I think Ten-ten told me, and she heard it from Lee…"

Sasuke shook his head. Naturally, it would be overzealous Lee who spilled the beans. He could just see their mop-topped friend letting it slip out in an enthusiastic conversation, only to realize his mistake immediately thereafter. Glancing over at Naruto, Sasuke shrugged with an amused smile.

"Well, looks like the cat's out of the bag, eh?"

"So it would seem," Naruto replied before raising a hand. "Old man! More ramen!"

That was all that was said on the topic for the rest of the evening. Kiba seemed to relax and stopped inadvertently injuring his date, and actually began to joke around, telling stories and generally acting like his usual self. From what Sasuke could tell, this was working, because Hinata appeared delighted, laughing along in her quiet, sweet manner.

So it went for an hour or so, when Sasuke finally glanced down at his watch once more. It was seven o'clock.

"Well, guys, what do you say we take off?" Sasuke said, reaching for his wallet. "It gets dark so early now – and you still need to walk Hinata home, Kiba."

Kiba nodded as he pulled a few wrinkled bills from his pocket. "Not a bad idea. What about you two? Can you get home okay in this?"

Sasuke and Naruto looked back over their shoulders, only to see a wall of white as a snowstorm raged outside. The Uchiha sighed. "Well, my house isn't too far from here. Want to spend the night, Naruto?"

"I thought you'd never ask."

With that, Naruto and Sasuke paid for their food and rose, wrapping their jackets tightly around themselves. Standing near the exit, the blond turned to Hinata and waved. "Bye, Hinata! We should do this again sometime."

"Y-yes… that would be fun," the Hyuuga responded, her eyes locked on Kiba.

"Thanks, guys. See you later," Kiba said, returning the wave as the boyfriends stepped out into the storm.

Huddled close to each other for warmth, Naruto and Sasuke strolled through the icy streets, both feeling content. Little did they know that their newfound joy would soon abruptly shatter.

XXXXX

Kakashi and Iruka lay on the couch in the dark, both sweaty and exhausted – and for once, it was not due to hot, passionate sex. Somehow, in just a few months, Kakashi had forgotten how strenuous moving actually was. Moving all the boxes, furniture, clothing, and Iruka's other odds and ends inside had taken all afternoon. Fortunately, they had both managed to find substitutes for that day, but still, it had been a long day.

Glancing around the freshly painted, white den, Kakashi eyed the towers of boxes in amazement. How Iruka had managed to fit all of it inside his little apartment was beyond him. Of course, that was nothing compared to his wonder at how they had brought it all inside.

"Are you glad you came?" Kakashi asked, running his fingers through Iruka's hair, the other man's head resting on his chest.

"Of course," Iruka replied, staring up at his lover. "I have some concerns, but I think we can work it all out."

"Good – it'd never work if you didn't believe it was possible," the silver-haired teacher said, picking up the remote control. "Want to watch something? _Jeopardy's_ probably on."

"You always beat me at that show… your brain is like a sponge of useless information," Iruka said, sitting up. "But… what the hell, bring it on."

"That's the spirit," Kakashi said, pressing the power button.

With a flash, the television illuminated the room, but instead of showing Alex Trebek's mustachioed face, it revealed an emergency news broadcast. Kakashi's eyes widened as he leaned forward, listening intently.

"This just in: at approximately 5:00 this afternoon, two convicts escaped from the Konoha Prison. The escapees have been identified as Kisame Hoshigaki and Itachi Uchiha, both of whom were involved in the recent Akatsuki Corporation scandal. Details are still sketchy, but it appears that the duo disarmed a guard who was intoxicated while on duty, and then used the apprehended weapon to disable and injure several other guards in their escape. These are only preliminary reports, so please keep with us as more details come in. In the meantime lock your doors and stay inside – the two are considered armed and _extremely_ dangerous."

Kakashi felt his body go rigid, the remote slipping from his grip. It hit the floor with a dull thud just as his heart began to pound in his chest. It was Iruka who broke the silence, however, clasping one of his lover's frozen hands as he said, "Kakashi – you have to call Sasuke."

Taking a deep breath, Kakashi nodded and rushed into the kitchen for the phone. He picked up the cordless, his hands shaking as he pressed the phone to his ear. Again, he stopped in his tracks, his blood running cold.

The phone was dead.

_Wait! My cell!_

Reaching into his pocket, Kakashi pulled out his cell and flipped it open. To his dismay, the screen read "No service." Cursing, he slammed it on the counter and struggled to calm himself.

_Damn this storm… probably blocking the signal…_

"Kakashi!"

Iruka's cry of terror echoed through the house, causing Kakashi's head to snap to the side. He darted back to the den, turning the corner just in time to hear a window shatter. Scanning the room hastily, Kakashi found Iruka standing with his back up against the wall, brandishing a fire poker as his entire body trembled. He rushed over to the man, gently shaking him out of his stunned state.

"Iruka? What's going on?"

"Watch out!" Iruka cried, the blood draining from his face.

Raising an eyebrow in confusion, Kakashi barely had time to register his lover's warning before he was struck in the back of the head. He crumbled to the ground, seeing only Iruka's feet before everything went black.

XXXXX

When Kakashi regained consciousness, the first thing he noticed was that he couldn't move his arms or legs. The second thing was the sharp pain in the back of his head that nearly drowned out his other senses. A short distance away, he could hear Iruka's muffled whimpers. When the teacher finally opened his eyes, he could see only the grinning Kisame Hoshigaki, looming mere inches from his face.

"Looks like he's coming to, Itachi," the blue-skinned man announced with a chuckle. "What should we do with him?"

"I'll handle this, Kisame," Itachi responded, shoving his companion out of the way. He crouched down to get a better look at Kakashi as he sat bound to his chair, giving the teacher a dark glare with his eerie, red eyes. Kakashi could just make out the metallic glint of a gun in the man's hand. "All right, Kakashi. You know what I want. Now where is he?"

Kakashi was a bit angry he was wearing his mask – otherwise he would've spat right at the Uchiha's face. Instead, he only smiled, his eyes narrowing. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"I'm no fool, Kakashi. I know you and Sasuke moved in here a few months ago – now where is he?"

For whatever reason, Kakashi laughed. Maybe it was at the futility of his predicament, or maybe Kisame had just hit him a bit harder than he thought. Either way, he was in hysterics. "You know… to tell you the truth, I don't know. He was supposed to be here helping us move in, but he took off. He could be anywhere."

Itachi sighed and rose to his feet, his eyes closed. "Kisame, help him remember."

Cracking his knuckles, the shark-man stepped forward with his usual sadistic grin. "With pleasure."

The blow came quickly and powerfully, striking Kakashi across the face with such force that his chair toppled over to the side. There, he could see a bloodied Iruka tied up in a similar position, his mouth duct-taped shut. Returning his gaze to Itachi, Kakashi spit a mouthful of blood into his mask. "Why do you care where he is? What are you going to do to him?"

"I can't tell you that," Itachi replied, his voice filled with melancholy. "You _can_ tell me where Sasuke is, though. I don't want to hurt you, Kakashi. You were always good to us after Mom and Dad died."

Kakashi fumed as Kisame delivered a swift kick to his side. He cried out in pain as a rib snapped. "You mean after you _killed_ them. "

Itachi crouched down, watching the teacher intently with his red eyes. "That's right… after I killed them. That's why I need to find Sasuke – so he can finally know the truth."

"And then kill him, too. Why not finish your little holocaust? You realize your brother has so much to live for, right? He has a family now, someone to love – something you stole from him! Why do you want to end that?"

Itachi paused, taking a deep breath before rising to his feet again, his back to Kakashi. "Kisame, get him to spit it out, one way or another."

Again, Kakashi heard the shark-man crack his knuckles. Moments later, a flurry of blows rained down on him. A punch to the face, a kick to the ribs, a stomp on his arm – Kakashi tried his best not to let his agony show, to endure the pain as he suffered blow after blow.

Then, just when he thought he'd reached his limit, he heard it: the front door unlocking.

Sasuke was home.

* * *

Wow, I'm just cruel. So many cliffhangers. What is Itachi there for? Why is he looking for Sasuke? And what will happen when the brothers meet once again? Find out next time in "For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him," and remember: review!


	55. on the Trigger of a Gun

So sorry, you guys. The holidays messed with this release quite a bit. I know it's late, but hopefully you'll enjoy it regardless. Only two or three chapters left (haven't decided yet). This is certainly the climax of the story, combined with the last chapter and the following one. Anyway, I won't delay any longer - enjoy the chapter!

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55. … on the Trigger of a Gun

When Sasuke Uchiha stepped inside his house that evening, he had no idea what awaited him. All he could think of was spending the night with Naruto – after receiving a nice tongue lashing from Kakashi and Iruka for neglecting his move-in duties, of course. Even when Sasuke noticed the distinct silence permeating throughout the house, he never once suspected that anything was amiss, assuming that Iruka and Kakashi were stewing in sullen anger.

As soon as he turned to shut the door, however, he knew. There, standing in the shadows, was the looming form of Kisame Hoshigaki, his shark-like teeth flashing in the darkness. Staggering backward, Sasuke tried to speak, but his tongue seemed caught in his throat.

"Sasuke? What's wr–" Naruto asked obliviously, only to have his words muffled by one of Kisame's massive hands. Wrapping his other hand around his waist, the blue-skinned giant lifted Naruto off the ground, laughing as the blond's legs flailed uselessly.

"What should we do with the runt, Itachi?" Kisame asked, staring at something over Sasuke's shoulder.

_Itachi? No… it can't be…_

Turning his head slowly to the side, Sasuke found himself staring into the red eyes of his brother. He jumped back until he was pressed up against the wall, sweat pouring from his brow as he looked back and forth between the intruders.

"Take him upstairs and keep him quiet," Itachi replied, taking a step towards the younger Uchiha. "Sasuke and I have some things to discuss."

Naruto bit down on Kisame's hand, forcing the shark-man to release his mouth. The blond shouted, "Sasuke! Run! Go get help…"

"Shut up, brat!" Kisame snapped, punching the blond in the gut. Naruto gasped once before his mouth was covered once more, this time much more forcefully.

Sasuke wanted nothing more than to follow his boyfriend's instructions – to run away and escape this nightmare before things got any worse. He knew it would be pointless, though. After all, Kisame was blocking the door, and Sasuke had no idea if he could get to any other exits. Even if he did manage to break free, the Uchiha knew that it would only spell trouble for Naruto, not to mention Kakashi and Iruka – assuming they were still alive.

Gulping, Sasuke, stared up at Itachi warily. "Naruto… just do what he says."

The blond's eyes narrowed in confused frustration, and for a time he continued to struggle. When he noticed the seriousness in his boyfriend's eyes, though, he stopped resisting. Returning Sasuke's even gaze, Itachi nodded. "That's more like it. Upstairs, Kisame – family business, you know."

Without another word, Kisame hauled Naruto up to the second floor, his stomps echoing throughout the silent house. Moments later, there was the slamming of a door. Sasuke sighed. "Where are Kakashi and Iruka?"

"They're in the other room, safe and sound," the elder Uchiha said, his voice showing no sign of emotion. It made Sasuke uneasy, not knowing what his brother was thinking – he was just standing there, staring down at his little brother with those eerie, red eyes. "Just calm down, Sasuke."

Sasuke laughed bitterly. "Calm down? You expect me to calm down at a time like this? My family's being held hostage, and now I'm standing face-to-face with the man who killed my parents! How the hell do you expect me to act?"

Itachi's movements were quick – impossibly so. He stepped forward in a flash, his hand planted on Sasuke's shoulder as he bent down to stare his brother in the eye, his face maintaining it's usual stolid expression. "I know, Sasuke. I know. Just hear me out."

Sasuke slapped his hand away, his heart throbbing with sudden panic. "Why the hell should I?"

"Because otherwise you'll never know the truth."

The words knocked the wind out of Sasuke. The truth – there _was_ a secret, something that had been hidden from him all this time. Either that, or Itachi was just buying some time before killing him and finishing the family holocaust. Sasuke hoped it wasn't the latter.

"W-what do you mean?" Sasuke asked finally, his body trembling in a combination of terror and anticipation.

"There's something I've been wanting to tell you for years, Sasuke… the reason why I did what I did," Itachi said, reaching into his pocket. He pulled forth a syringe filled with a red fluid, bearing the Uchiha insignia. "It all has to do with this: the Sharingan Project."

"Sharingan Project?"

"That's right. It was Mom and Dad's ultimate test – the discovery that would launch them back to the top. Their company was failing, and they knew it – that was why they put every last resource they had into this drug," the elder Uchiha said, eyeing the syringe in disgust. "It was meant to be the Uchiha Corporation's saving grace – instead, it proved to be its undoing."

"What is it, exactly?" Sasuke asked, watching the needle nervously. He could just see his brother jamming it into his throat.

"It's a chemical meant to enhance various aspects of the subject's body. Sharper reflexes, faster speeds, and, most significantly, the keenest eyesight the world has ever seen. It was a surprisingly cheap drug to manufacture – it would be easy for the military to distribute them among their troops and create an army of super soldiers. The amount of training needed by new recruits would drop drastically – all they would need is regular injections of 'Sharingan' and they would be battle ready at any time."

"But I'm guessing there was a problem."

Itachi smiled – it almost seemed warm. Almost. "Correct. Testing it on lab mice, Mom and Dad managed to prove that their drug had the intended effect of enhancing the subject's physical attributes. Mice were able to run through a maze in unprecedented times, survive in rooms full of cats, and kill their competition with ruthless efficiency. However, there was a downside – of the mice tested, 90% died within minutes of receiving the drug."

"_Ninety percent?"_ Sasuke asked, astounded by the number. "There's no way that could ever be safe for use on humans."

"Mom and Dad knew that. They were running out of money, though – they didn't have time to tweak the formula until it was safe for use on humans. If they didn't get the 'Sharingan' onto the market soon, they were going to lose _everything_. Thousands of jobs would be lost, all the wealth they had saved up, their future… it would all be gone.

"So they decided to fudge the numbers. They would report that only 5% of the mice had died, and that those were due to unforeseen circumstances – health issues with the rats themselves, let's say. To prove to investors and potential buyers the worth of the 'Sharingan,' Mom and Dad decided to use a human guinea pig – someone within the family that they could pay under the table to be a test subject. That man was Obito Uchiha."

"Obito?" Sasuke asked, shaking his head in confusion. "B-but he died…"

"That was something Mom and Dad weren't counting on. Obito had needed money – that's why he was hanging around us so often. Mom and Dad were getting close to him, so that he would agree to the experiment. Unfortunately, he got into that car crash before they had the chance. Desperate, they set their sights… on you, Sasuke."

There was no question that Itachi was telling the truth – Sasuke could see it in his brother's eyes. His parents were planning to use him as a test subject, to inject him with a drug that more likely than not would've killed him, just so they wouldn't lose their fortune. Sasuke wanted to vomit. He said nothing.

Itachi sighed, his face betraying the inner torment he had been hiding for years. "I found out about their plan, Sasuke… I tried to talk them out of it. They'd made up their minds, though – you were to receive the Sharingan. If you died, they would lose a son, their company, and everything else they had striven so hard to achieve. If you lived, the Uchiha Corporation would become the greatest manufacturer of biochemical weapons the world had ever seen.

"So… I did the only thing I could. I couldn't just sit by, knowing they were very likely going to kill you… and even if they succeeded, they'd kill hundreds of thousands of people with their faulty drug. I had a choice – to take their lives, or let them take yours… and I chose theirs."

Falling to his knees, Sasuke stared down at the floor and retched, though nothing came out. He began breathing heavily, his entire body trembling as the gravity of what his brother was saying sank in. "Then… that means…"

Itachi nodded. "I killed them, and then I merged with the Akatsuki Corporation to save our business I did my best to cover up the existence of the 'Sharingan.' I burned documents, I deleted data, destroyed thousands of vials of that cursed substance, so that no trace of its existence could ever be discovered. Akatsuki helped me plan the whole thing – they assumed I was in it for the money, the power, the greed. I did whatever I could to make them think I was just a backstabbing bastard like them… I needed their help to organize everything. It was probably the hardest thing I ever did."

"Why…" Sasuke began, struggling to fathom this revelation. "Why didn't you tell me about this sooner?"

"I couldn't. If I did, and the government found out about the 'Sharingan,' they wouldn't hesitate to seize it for their own testing. A drug with such potential would cost millions of lives, whether it succeeded or not. I wouldn't have been able to live with myself if I had let such a secret get loose. That's why I saved only two vials of the drug and had the rest destroyed. One of those vials is right here – I needed proof that I wasn't making this up."

The younger Uchiha realized what his brother was implying. He had to be sure, however. "And the other…?"

"I used on myself in order to escape," Itachi said before coughing violently into his hand. "I was able to disarm the guard and disable others with incredible accuracy. Naturally, since Kisame was my cellmate, I had to bring him along with me. I still have to keep up the act, otherwise he'll know something's up."

"Is Naruto going to be okay with him?"

There was a sudden scream, one that Sasuke immediately recognized as Naruto's. He and Itachi exchanged a quick glance before darting up the stairs. Sasuke tried to keep himself from shaking, but as he climbed upward he could only think of the terrible things Kisame must've been doing to the blond. Torturing him, raping him, killing him – the images all passed through his mind quickly and painfully.

_Naruto… please be all right. For the love of God, _please_ be all right…_

Turning the corner, everything happened in a flash. Sasuke saw a glint of steel emerging from his bedroom, followed closely by similar shine as Itachi reached for his gun. Before Sasuke could even process what had happened, he heard his brother pull the trigger.

Smoke rising from the barrel of Itachi's pistol, the Uchihas stared at the form on the ground. It was not the blue giant they had both expected, but a vulpine blond wielding Sasuke's katana. There was a gunshot wound in his chest.

"NARUTO!" Sasuke shouted, rushing to his boyfriend's side. He slapped the blond's face lightly, hoping to snap him back to consciousness. Instead, Naruto's head merely tilted to the side, showing no sign of resistance.

Pulling his boyfriend close, Sasuke felt Naruto's fresh blood drip onto him, the warmth slowly leaving his body. Staring into the bedroom, Sasuke found Kisame lying facedown on the floor in a pool of blood. From his angle, it looked as if his throat had been slit.

"Sasuke… I… I didn't know…" Itachi said, collapsing onto the floor beside him.

"Go," Sasuke whispered curtly, tears running down his cheeks.

"What?"

The younger Uchiha glared at his brother and shouted, "I said go! You've taken everything from me! Go away, and never come back!"

Itachi winced at the words, turning his head to the side as if Sasuke's very gaze burned him. He did not leave, though, choosing instead to kneel beside his brother and set down his gun. "I really am sorry, Sasuke… it was the Sharingan. It forces my brain to jump to conclusions based on what I see – when I saw Naruto coming out with that sword, I thought he was going to kill me. I acted before I had a chance to think…"

Sasuke's entire body shook, his hand clenching with rage. Reaching down, he snatched Itachi's gun and pointed it at him, his eyes red from the tears. "Shut up… just shut up! Don't you understand? I loved him! I wanted to spend the rest of my life with him, and you stole him from me you bastard!" His finger tightened on the trigger. "You're no brother of mine."

His red eyes fixed on Sasuke, Itachi simply held up his hands, making no attempt to move. "If that's the way you feel... then kill me."

The young Uchiha's eyes went wide in bewilderment for a brief moment. Was Itachi serious? He had the Sharingan – he could take the gun before Sasuke even had a chance to pull the trigger if he wanted to. Why was he giving Sasuke this opportunity? Shaking the thoughts from his head, the raven-haired teen gripped the gun tighter, struggling to control his trembling hands. "Don't tempt me."

"I mean it, Sasuke. I've told you everything I wanted to say… if I haven't convinced you after that, then I never will," Itachi said, closing his eyes. "Just know that, either way, I love you, brother."

The gun pointed squarely at Itachi's forehead, Sasuke tried to pull the trigger. He wanted to, hoping that it would end this nightmare, that he might wake up and have Naruto back, have his family back, and never have to know the Uchiha Corporation's terrible secrets. Despite his longing to put an end to it all, though, Sasuke found it was useless – he couldn't kill his brother… not after knowing what Itachi had gone through for him.

"Dammit!" Sasuke cursed, hurling the gun to the ground. Moments later, he felt only warmth as Itachi threw his arms around him, pulling him into a firm, brotherly hug. Through his misty vision, Sasuke could just barely see Itachi smiling – just like he used to back when they were kids. Before everything had gone terribly wrong.

"It'll be okay, Sasuke," Itachi whispered, rubbing the back of his brother's head soothingly. "It'll be okay…"

And Sasuke let the tears fall. All the pain that had been building up all those years after his parents' death, the doubt about his brother, the fear of loss, the severe loneliness – he let them all out, his tears staining Itachi's orange jumpsuit as he sobbed.

"I… I just couldn't do it… I didn't want to lose you again…" Sasuke choked out, burying his head in Itachi's chest.

"I know, Sasuke," Itachi whispered, his voice hoarse. "I know how hard it's been for you. I wish there had been another way…"

"But you'll be here from now on, right?" the young Uchiha asked, looking up hopefully. Much to his dismay, though, he found Itachi was crying tears of blood, and the color was draining from his face.

The elder brother shook his head. "I'm afraid not, Sasuke. I believe I was one of the 90%… the Sharingan's taking its toll…"

"No! Not you too! I… I don't want to be alone again!" Sasuke cried out in desperation, shaking his brother violently. "Snap out of it!"

"You won't be alone, Sasuke. Not anymore," Itachi replied, his smile only growing broader as his shoulders sagged. "You have Kakashi, and Iruka… they're both tied up downstairs. They'll be fine. And don't forget about Naruto…"

Glancing down at his boyfriend, Sasuke bit his lip. "But… he's been shot…"

"Yes… but he's alive. Sasuke… I've never seen you happier than you've been with him. Don't let him go. Now, I'm afraid it's time for me to go," the elder Uchiha said, backing out of the embrace. With a shaking finger, he dully poked his brother in the head and whispered, "Sorry, Sasuke… there won't be a next time."

With that, Itachi suddenly went limp, his entire weigh pressing down on his younger brother. Sasuke propped up the body, too stunned to speak. He sat there for some time, bearing his deceased brother's weight while kneeling in his boyfriend's blood, until he heard the wail of sirens outside. He shivered.

_Don't leave me alone… please…_

* * *

Itachi Uchiha has died. Kisame Hoshigaki was slain. Kakashi and Iruka are injured, and Naruto's life hangs in the balance. Will he pull through, or will Sasuke suffer yet another loss? Can Naruto keep his impossible promise? Find out next time in _For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him_.


	56. Nothing but the Dead and Dying

Merry Christmas, everyone! Here's the latest chapter, where we finally learn of Naruto's fate. I'm sure you're all eager to get reading, so I won't keep you waiting any longer. I just want to thank you all for reading and reviewing. Now, on with the chapter!

* * *

56. Nothing but the Dead and Dying

Sasuke Uchiha sat in the waiting room of Konoha Hospital late that night, staring blankly down at his hands. He felt numb. His body, his mind, his very spirit felt as if the life had been sucked out of them. Aside from himself and one old woman passed out in the chair across from him, the room was empty. There were a few magazines strewn about the floor, discussing the latest celebrity rumors and Angelina Jolie's umpteenth adopted baby. Of course, Sasuke was in no mood to read any of them – in fact, he wasn't in the mood to do much of anything.

Kakashi and Iruka had been hospitalized – the shock of being attacked, along with the beatings they'd received, had been enough to knock them unconscious. A nurse had informed Sasuke that they were in stable conditions. They would live. Naruto, on the other hand, was in the intensive care unit. Sasuke had sat by him on the ambulance ride to the hospital, holding his hand firmly, fearing to let go. When they arrived, however, the paramedics had torn his blond away and placed him on a gurney. Sasuke had watched from the ambulance as Naruto was rushed down the hallway, an oxygen mask over his face and his torn clothes drenched in blood.

Sasuke prayed it wasn't the last time he'd see the vulpine boy alive.

His eyes fixed on the floor, Sasuke tried his hardest to comprehend all that had happened. When the police arrived, they told him they'd received a call ten minutes before, but had been unable to get there quickly because of the blizzard. As far as Sasuke could tell, though, no one had been able to make the call – Kakashi and Iruka had been tied up, and Naruto was cornered by Kisame. At first, the police had thought Sasuke had been the caller – they said he sounded just like the man they'd spoken to.

_It had to have been Itachi… he never intended to leave there alive. He knew the Sharingan would kill him, so he called the police to deal with Kisame and put an end to it all…_

That made sense – Itachi would've had the opportunity. All he had to do was get away from Kisame for a moment to make the call. But, of course, when the police arrived, Kisame was already dead. Sasuke concluded that Naruto had killed him – he must've broken free from the shark-man's grip and grabbed Sasuke's katana, the sword Naruto had always admired.

_Dammit, Naruto… if only you'd waited… the police would've fixed everything, and you wouldn't have been shot…_

His fingers curling tightly into fists, Sasuke bit his lip. Never in his life had he felt so useless. Even when his parents died, he hadn't felt so utterly powerless. Now, though, he was grown up, he was supposed to have some control over his life, but instead everything was exactly the same. He was alone, and the boy he loved was dying in the other room.

Wrapped up in his thoughts, Sasuke never even heard the waiting room door open. It wasn't until he saw the shadow looming over him that the Uchiha glanced up to find a familiar, redheaded teen waiting, his face expressionless.

"Mind if I sit down?" Gaara asked in his monotone voice.

Sasuke said nothing, but stared back at his hands. Gaara sat down beside the teen, and together they remained silent for some time. Sasuke could only imagine what was going through the other teen's head – after all, he loved Naruto, too. He was probably thinking about what would've happened if Naruto had chosen _him_ instead, if Naruto had returned that stolen kiss all those months ago and shared that love. Naruto never would've met Itachi. He never would've been shot, never would've been endangered…

"It's not your fault, you know."

Gaara's voice maintained its usual calm, quiet demeanor, but somehow the words pierced the silence like a knife. Though stunned, Sasuke did not look up – it was too painful to hear his thoughts spoken aloud. "Yes it is… if Naruto hadn't met me, then this never would've happened…"

"If Naruto hadn't met you, he wouldn't have found that happiness he was searching for," Gaara interrupted, sounding as if he were restraining himself. Sasuke thought he detected a hint of bitterness. "You weren't the only one who was lonely, you know. Naruto could put on a good face, but he was hurting on the inside before he met you. Why do you think I never targeted him?"

Sasuke shrugged. "I assumed you hadn't gotten around to him yet."

"With you, I thought you had everything – you had money, popularity, and yet you never seemed to appreciate it. Of course, I didn't know what you'd been through… my methods were shallow at best, I'll admit," the redhead said with a weak smile. "Naruto, though… I could tell he was suffering. He was hated by everyone – we were similar. That's why, when he defended you that day… I just couldn't comprehend it. Why would he come to your aid? You shunned him, and yet he refused to leave you alone. For him, Sasuke, you were worth fighting for – worth dying for, even."

The words caused Sasuke to flinch noticeably. "Don't say that…"

"I'm telling you the truth," Gaara insisted, closing his eyes. "I heard the police talking – about how Naruto attacked Kisame, how he was planning to attack your brother. He put himself in harm's way for you, knowing perfectly well what might happen. Just like when he came up to talk to me on the bridge, he threw caution to the wind to do what he felt was right. It's not your fault that Naruto got shot – he acted on his own."

"But… wouldn't he have been better off without me?"

Gaara was silent for a moment. Glancing over at the other teen, Sasuke saw only a pained expression on his face as he made his confession, "No, Sasuke… he wouldn't. You were always the right one for him. You made him happy, and that's all that matters. No matter what happens here, you will always be the boy he loves, and I know, deep down, you feel the same. I may have wanted Naruto, but only you were able to show him the love that he needed. Don't you _ever_ doubt that."

His hands trembling, Sasuke felt a tear escape from the corner of his eye. He took a few short breaths, trying to control himself, before finally letting loose. "I'm so scared, Gaara… I don't want to lose him…"

"Then remember the promise he made."

The voice wasn't Gaara's. Turning his head towards the door in astonishment, Sasuke found Shikmaru Nara standing beneath the flickering light, along with Temari, Lee, Kiba, and Choji. Hurriedly wiping his eyes, Sasuke tried to regain his composure. "Wh-what are you guys doing here?"

"We came as soon as we heard the news – all of us," Shikamaru said, nodding to Gaara. "Mr. Subakuno here demanded to speak with you alone first. We've been waiting out in the hallway."

Glancing over at the redhead in question, Sasuke's mouth hung slightly open in disbelief. "Is that true?"

"I knew you'd be blaming yourself, and I wanted to help if at all possible. Think of it as my way of making amends for being an ass earlier," Gaara admitted with a smirk.

"Thanks, Gaara."

Stepping somewhat slowly into the room, a rather pale Kiba spoke up. "H-how is he, Sasuke?"

"Yeah, we only heard what they said on the news – that there was a break in at your house by two former members of the Akatsuki Corporation, and that Naruto was shot," Shikamaru added, trying to clarify for his evidently shocked friend. "What happened exactly?"

Sighing, Sasuke tried his best to put on a calm expression, if only to put Kiba's mind at ease. "Well, everything you heard was true. My brother shot Naruto… the nurses said the bullet is rubbing up against his heart. They're in the operating room right now. It's supposed to be a very tricky procedure – if they make one false move, they could rupture an artery…"

Kiba's lip began to quiver noticeably at the thought. He buried his face in his hands, "Oh god… please, don't take Naruto…"

Forcing a smile, Lee stepped forward and threw an arm over the distraught dog-boy's shoulder. "I'm sure it's not that bad, right Sasuke? They probably have their best surgeon on the case. He'll be fine in no time!"

It was evident to everyone in the room that not even Lee believed his words. They understood all-too well how dire Naruto's situation was – his life hung in the balance, completely out of their control. One false move in the operating room, the slightest tear to the heart, and it could easily spell the end for their friend.

Shikamaru, crouching down before his friend, exhaled in a frustrated manner. He gazed up at Sasuke once more, reiterating his earlier question. "Well, Sasuke, there's nothing we can do but pray. So let me ask you again – do you believe that promise he made to you? That he will never leave you alone again?"

Sasuke had to consider this for a moment. He wanted to say 'no,' just like he had several months before. After all, Naruto couldn't control fate – death could come for him at any time. There were some things that people just couldn't possibly control, and this was certainly one of them.

And yet, even knowing Naruto's state, knowing his chances of survival, Sasuke felt a strange comfort in remembering that promise. Even if he didn't believe it, _Naruto_ believed it, and he would do everything in his power to keep it – even if it meant grappling with death itself.

"I do," Sasuke concluded, taking a deep breath. "He's already done the impossible once… he taught me how to love again. If he can do that, he can do whatever he wants."

Smiling Shikamaru took a seat on the floor and nodded. "That's the spirit. We just have to stay positive. Naruto will pull through this."

Joining the Nara on the floor, a misty-eyed Kiba added between sniffles, "Yeah – I've known that idiot longer than anyone here. If there's one thing Naruto has, it's luck."

One by one, the others all sat down on the tile, forming a circle as they shared stories of the blond. Gaara spoke first, "I remember when I kissed him that day. I wanted it so badly, I didn't even care about the consequences. I thought he'd beat me to a pulp right then and there, but he didn't. He was angry, of course, but he seemed to understand. Even when he was so clearly offended, he was sympathetic first – always putting his friends before himself.

"I know what you mean," Lee chimed in, clasping the redhead's hand. "When you all fought at Sasuke's housewarming party, he said what had to be said. He was angry, but he made sure you and Sasuke knew you were in the wrong. He forced you to apologize, and he made you realize your true feelings for me, Gaara."

"That's sweet," Temari said with a dreamy sigh. "I was wondering what happened after I brought Shikamaru back home butt naked."

"Must you bring that up?" Shikamaru asked, his cheeks coloring as he looked to the side embarrassedly.

"Of course! You looked so sexy that day," Temari continued, running her hand down her boyfriend's thigh. "Come on, you know you enjoyed it, too…"

"N-next story! Choji! What do you remember about Naruto?" Shikamaru said hastily, his voice somewhat higher in pitch as he shied away from Temari.

"Umm… he bought me some chips once," the plump teen responded after a moment, scratching his head confusedly. "I was really hungry, and he spent his last dollar on them. We shared them."

Shikamaru frowned. "Well, close enough, I guess. Personally, I can remember when Kiba and I confronted Naruto about his feelings for you, Sasuke."

"Really? How'd you find out about that?" Sasuke asked, eyeing the Nara suspiciously.

"A little eavesdropping can go a long way," Kiba answered with a slight smile. "I didn't mean to overhear anything – I was just going to invite him to dinner, since he was feeling a bit down – but then I heard him talking to Iruka. He said he was in love, and it didn't take long to put two and two together."

"The thing is, when Naruto discovered Kiba had been listening, he did not take it so well. He bolted and came over to my place," Shikamaru responded, nodding as he recalled the series of events. "He wanted to hide, to try to ignore the feelings he was harboring for you. Kiba tracked him down, though, and he told me everything that'd happened. That's when I decided it would be my goal to fix the two of you up."

"Shika the matchmaker," Temari added, throwing her arms around the Nara. "I didn't realize you were so good at playing cupid."

"Well, it didn't hurt that Sasuke had practically admitted he liked Naruto earlier that day. I knew there was something going on, and when Naruto said he loved him… well, it was an easy decision to make."

Kiba grinned. "And the rest, as they say, is history. The two of you fell in love, you dated, and you became a great couple. Regardless of what happens today, I'm glad the two of you met."

"Agreed," Shikamaru said, staring intently at Sasuke. "That bloody nose you got could very well be the best thing that ever happened to you."

His eyes welling up, Sasuke sat in silence for a time, his mind becoming flooded with memories of his beloved blond. The bloody nose, the date at Ichiraku, the project for Kakashi's class, the fight with Gaara, all leading up to that first confession of love. Making out on Naruto's couch, their tryst under the bridge, their sweaty kiss in the sauna, skinny-dipping at Lake Konoha – then, of course, there was the promise. That day at Konoha Bridge, with Naruto rising to what Sasuke feared would be his death.

_But it wasn't. He came back that day… just like he always did. Even when I ran away with O after we had sex, Naruto came after me. He was determined never to leave me alone… never again…_

As the tears flowed liberally down his cheeks, Sasuke felt only warmth as Shikamaru and the others closed around him, pulling the raven-haired teen into a powerful group hug.

It was then that he realized it. Even if Naruto died on that day, Sasuke wouldn't be alone. Naruto would never leave him alone again, because he had left the Uchiha with a legacy of friendship. People that Sasuke had never spoken to were now among his closest friends – not just Naruto's friends, but _his_.

_I'll never be alone again…_

The door to the waiting room squeaked open, causing Sasuke to look up abruptly. There, a shy nurse stood carrying a clipboard. She glanced up uncertainly. "Uchiha?"

"Yes?" Sasuke asked, his heart palpitating as his friends took a few steps back. He tried to read the nurse's face, to see if she had good news or bad news for them, but to no avail.

The nurse flipped over a page, "Umm… Naruto is out of surgery and should be waking up from his anesthesia shortly…"

Before another word could be said, Sasuke bolted from his seat and darted out the door, nearly bowling over the nurse in the process. Stunned, the young woman attempted to call out to the Uchiha, waving her arm as she said, "Wait! You can't go in there!"

Sasuke did not hear her plea, however, and even if he had, he would've ignored it. This went beyond hospital regulations – this was about _love_. The love he had for an idiot blond who literally had run headfirst into his life. The love he had for the boy of his dreams, the boy he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.

_The love I've reserved for Naruto, whenever I may find him…_

Pushing another astonished nurse out of the way, Sasuke barreled down the hallway and through the door to the ICU. There, he made his way down the seemingly endless corridor, scouring the names on the wall as he passed. Aizawa, Smith, Stamos, Fisher, Miller, Smith again – then, almost shining like a beacon, Uzumaki. Skidding to a halt, Sasuke pushed open the door and stared inside, panting heavily.

There he was, lying peacefully in his bed, his bare, somewhat muscular chest covered in a reddened bandage. He turned his head wearily to the side as soon as the door opened, his eyes just barely cracking open to reveal the deep blue orbs within. His lips curled into a smile.

"Sasuke…"

Choking on his tears, Sasuke rushed forward and collapsed by his boyfriend's side, pulling the blond into an embrace. "Naruto…"

Wincing, Naruto pushed the Uchiha away and grinned. "Hey! That hurts! I just got shot, you know."

Brushing away some of the moisture from his cheeks, Sasuke laughed. "Right – sorry… it's just…"

"I know, Sasuke. I know," Naruto replied, running his hand through the other teen's raven hair. "I didn't mean to worry you."

"Then what'd you let yourself get shot for?" Sasuke asked, half jokingly, half angrily. "You could've died!"

"I was afraid you might die if I _didn't_ do anything," the blond said, crossing his arms defensively. "I know you like to think that you're the only one who worries in this relationship, but you're wrong. I was petrified when that shark-guy took me upstairs, only because I thought I'd never see you again… you know what that kind of fear is like."

Suddenly, Sasuke felt incredibly selfish. Naruto was 100% right – Sasuke had, for at least a moment, forgotten that Naruto had fears of his own. They had discussed them after their fight at the Uchiha's housewarming party, and Sasuke had memorized the list in detail. Right after snakes, Bigfoot, and the sun exploding, there was Naruto's chief concern – losing his loved ones.

_He thought it was the end for me… he didn't want to lose me, even if it meant risking his own life…_

"Naruto… thank you," Sasuke finally said, gripping the blond's hand firmly. "Let me make the same promise you made to me – I will _never_ leave you alone ever again."

"On the contrary, you'll be leaving him alone right now!"

Suddenly, Sasuke was jerked to his feet by a very flustered nurse – the very one he had nearly knocked over outside the waiting room. The Uchiha's face paled considerably. "Umm… hi there… I was just leaving…"

"That's right, you are! Naruto here is just recovering from a very serious operation! He needs his rest – no visitors!" the nurse said, seizing Sasuke by the ear. "Now, out you go!"

Grimacing, Sasuke stumbled backward as he was led out of the room. Staring back at his boyfriend, he found the blond laughing hysterically, at the sight. Despite his irritation at being interrupted once again, Sasuke felt a surge of warmth throughout his body. He smiled.

_I mean it, Naruto… I'll never leave you again…_

* * *

Reunited, and it feels so good! Naruto lives to see another day, and Sasuke is not forced to experience another loss in love. Only one chapter left, and then an epilogue. Thank you all for reading and sticking with this story for so long - you're all great! Until next time, dear readers, I bid you good day, and remember - review!


	57. Oh I Love You, Boy

This chapter is late, I know. I don't have an excuse, either - let's just borrow from the book of Kakashi and say I got lost down the road of life. Or that I was helping an old lady cross the street. Anyway, here it is - the penultimate chapter of this story. Only an epilogue left, which I hope to have up sometime next week. Sorry for the delay, again, and thank you all for your patience and for reading over the past few years. Now, on with the chapter!

WARNING: Lime in this chapter. You've been warned!

* * *

57. Oh I Love You, Boy

The following months went by quickly for Sasuke Uchiha. Naruto recovered surprisingly quickly from his gunshot wound – the doctors attributed it to his astounding stamina – and soon the two lovebirds were resuming a fairly normal life at school. Every day they would eat lunch with their friends, neither one trying to hide their feelings for each other.

Yes, they were out and enjoying their more public relationship. Though they had to deal with some harassment, particularly from some of the guys in the locker room, neither Sasuke nor his lover regretted their decision. There was no sense in hiding their feelings any longer – after what the two of them had been through, there was nothing left to fear.

Of course, there were upsides to coming out of the closet: Sasuke no longer was swarmed by fangirls on a daily basis, as they apparently realized that the Uchiha never intended to reciprocate their feelings. Instead, the girls opted to swoon over the most eligible bachelor in the school – one Choji Akimichi. Unlike Sasuke, the… "plump" teen thoroughly enjoyed the attention, a big grin permanently glued to his face as Sakura and Ino led the pack of love-starved girls following in his wake.

Then came exams. The end of May snuck up on Sasuke quite quickly – somehow, without any of the craziness of Gaara, Itachi, or O to distract him, the school year simply flew by. Naturally, though, he still needed to do well in his classes, and so the Uchiha decided to hit the books. In addition, he didn't want Naruto to get held back for failing, so he dragged the blond along with him.

And that's where Sasuke found himself on that Friday afternoon. He was seated on the floor of his bedroom, struggling to keep his focus on the book before him. Biting his lip, he stared at the words, reading the same sentence of history text for the fifth time. "Napoleon's ultimate defeat came at the Battle of Waterloo on June 18, 1815…"

_Just don't look at him, Sasuke… don't look…_

"Come on, Sasuke, there's no way some short French dude can be more fun than me," Naruto said seductively.

Sasuke bit down harder, tapping the floor anxiously with his pencil. In his peripheral vision, he could just barely see Naruto's discarded shorts draped over his bedpost. He sighed.

_Come study with me, I say. I'll help you with your math homework, I say. Then he makes it five whole minutes before his penis takes over…_

"I wore these just for you, Sasuke…" Naruto continued, his voice followed by the distinct snap of elastic.

Twitch.

_Don't look… that's just what he wants you to do…_

Sasuke began to sweat, the words on the page before him growing blurry as his mind wandered to his boyfriend. He could just imagine what Naruto was doing from the sounds: kneeling before Sasuke in his tight, orange briefs, sticking his hand down the front and gently stroking himself while rubbing another hand over his chest.

Another twitch. Sasuke had to adjust himself so that he wasn't pinched against the floor.

_Dammit, Naruto! You win!_

Turning his head upward, he found something pretty close to what he had predicted. Naruto was indeed kneeling before him in his orange briefs, and he was running his hands over himself in a sensual manner. What Sasuke had failed to predict, however, was the triumphant grin spreading over the blond's face.

"You like what you see, Sasuke?" Naruto asked as his hand slipped down the front of his briefs.

Sasuke nodded dumbly, his mouth slightly agape. Suddenly, Napoleon Bonaparte was the furthest thing from his mind.

"Well, why don't you come over here and join me, then?" the blond prodded, sliding the side of his briefs down to reveal his smooth Adonis belt.

Not needing to be asked twice, Sasuke nearly pounced upon his boyfriend, tackling him to the floor with a lustful ferocity. As he and Naruto kissed, the Uchiha attempted to slip his shirt off, growing only frustrated when the fabric came between him and his beloved. He wanted to taste Naruto, to feel the blond's warm body pressed against him – he craved it, _needed_ it like the very air he breathed.

So much had happened in only a few short months. Sasuke's life had been turned upside down again – his brother and O had both died, and he had lost his fortune, his mansion, and his future career. Despite this, though, as Sasuke ran his hands down his boyfriend's toned torso, he felt like the luckiest man alive.

Yes, it was corny, but it was the truth. Sasuke had friends now – people he could confide in, that he could rely upon to help him through the most difficult times. He had a _family_. Sure, it was a slightly dysfunctional and unconventional one, but it was a family regardless. No longer did he come home after school to be greeted only by a cold, sterile building and a distant brother. Instead, he threw open the doors and was met by Iruka's cheerful face and Kakashi's fatherly embrace.

Then there was Naruto – the boy who had made it all possible. Naruto was certainly the greatest change of all in Sasuke's life, someone he _loved_ with every fiber of his being. That was why they were currently tumbling across the floor and kicking books and papers around as they stripped – because they had found in each other what eludes most for their entire lives. It was love in the purest form. Sure, the sex was great, but Sasuke knew their feelings for each other went beyond mere teenage hormones. They balanced each other out. Where Sasuke had been in darkness, a brooding teen who resented the world Naruto had brought only light with his sunshine hair and his brilliant smile. He was irritating, childish, and stubborn, but at the same time tender, optimistic, and unexpectedly wise.

Now stripped down to his bulging red thong (a Valentine's day gift from Naruto, naturally), Sasuke straddled his boyfriend, savoring every taste of Naruto's mouth as their tongues met. They were both hot and sweaty, and the blond's distinct musk filled Sasuke with pleasure as he took a deep breath. He knew that scent well, now – he had memorized it after their numerous trysts in the school showers after gym class.

Sasuke felt the fabric of his thong strain at that thought. Silently, he cursed Naruto for being so distractingly sexy before delving back into his kiss. As for his boyfriend, the Uchiha could tell he was having an effect on him as well, based on the protrusion prodding Sasuke's crotch.

"What do you say we take this to the shower?" Sasuke asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I like the way you think," Naruto replied as the two rose to their feet.

For a moment, the couple stared at each other, their eyes drawn to each other's crotches in a combination of lust and amusement. As Sasuke had suspected, Naruto's manhood was straining against the fabric of his orange briefs, threatening to break through as he stood up straight. Chuckling, the Uchiha slapped the blond on the butt as they headed out of the bedroom and into the hallway.

They quickly realized that their plan was not particularly well thought-out. As soon as he set foot outside the bedroom, Sasuke found himself standing face to face with Iruka, who was carrying a fresh load of folded laundry, his hand extended as if to knock on the door. He stood there frozen for a moment, his eyes wide at the sight of the two boys in their nearly naked and very aroused state, before turning his head to the side with a deep blush.

"Umm… afternoon, boys," Iruka said, scratching his cheek with a free hand. "I… uh… have some fresh clothes for you two… I'll just set them down here for now."

"Uh… thanks," Sasuke responded, trying his best to hide his mortification at being caught in such a compromising position.

Naruto, on the other hand, seemed entirely at ease with the situation, throwing an arm casually over Sasuke's shoulder as if this were anything but awkward. "Perfect! We were just going to take a shower – now we'll have some fresh clothes for afterward."

"A… shower, yes," Iruka managed to say, his face turning an even deeper shade of red. "Well, have fun… I mean… umm… I don't know…"

As if to spare his father from any more embarrassment, Naruto simply brushed past him on his way to the bathroom. "Don't worry, we will."

Slipping past Iruka to join his boyfriend, Sasuke could've sworn he heard the man mutter, "Kids these days…"

Closing the door shut behind him (and making sure to lock it to prevent any more humiliation) Sasuke turned towards Naruto, who immediately threw his arms around the Uchiha and pulled him into a tight embrace. Their bare skin pressed against each other, Sasuke could only stare into the blond's deep blue eyes as his lips curled into a mischievous smile.

"Now, where were we?"

"I believe I was about to let the beast out of its cage," Sasuke replied, sliding his hand down the front of Naruto's briefs.

"Sounds like fun," Naruto said, slipping his own hands along the sides of the Uchiha's thong.

Steadily, the two stripped off the other's remaining clothing, causing their hardened tackle to spring forth in freedom. Kicking their underwear off to the side, the couple stepped into the shower and pulled the curtain shut. Standing with his back to the wall, Sasuke reached behind him and turned the handle, causing a burst of icy water to flow onto their heads.

"Geez that's cold!" Sasuke ejaculated, jumping slightly as the water rushed over him. Naruto only laughed, pulling the Uchiha closer.

"We'll just have to huddle together for warmth, then, won't we?"

As the water grew hotter and hotter, so too did their passions, the steam rising between them as they kissed beneath the showerhead. Somehow, amidst the sensations of Naruto's touch, his tastes, and the heat of the shower, Sasuke found himself thinking how very similar it all was to the morning after the sleepover at Naruto's – their make out session in the steamy bathroom. Yet, at the same time, Sasuke knew it was completely different – there was no longer the fear, no hesitations, and no hiding of his true feelings. He could finally express his love for Naruto without any restrictions.

Truly, this was what it meant to be happy.

With one hand resting on Naruto's bubble butt, and the other gently stroking his hardened member, Sasuke pulled out of the kiss for a moment and stared the blond in the eye. Returning the gaze, Naruto appeared somewhat frustrated and perplexed, but didn't say a word as he rested a hand on the Uchiha's shoulder.

"Naruto… I know I've told you before, but…"

Placing a finger on Sasuke's lips, the blond smiled. "I know, Sasuke. I love you, too."

Grinning, Sasuke leaned in once more to resume the kiss as his hand continued to run back and forth along his boyfriend's member. Seconds later, he felt Naruto's hand grasp his own, sending a surge of pleasure throughout his body. With his free hand, the Uchiha slid a few fingers between Naruto's butt cheeks, causing the blond to stiffen noticeably.

"Frisky today, aren't we?" Naruto asked between kisses.

"You know you love it."

"Well, you got me there."

As Naruto relaxed, Sasuke let his fingers slide further, until they had actually slipped inside the blond. With his other hand, the Uchiha continued to stroke faster and faster while Naruto did the same. Their grunts and moans mixed in with the cascade of water, and Sasuke was forced to close his eyes as he focused on the task at hand. He felt Naruto pressed against him, felt his hand rubbing against his crotch, and his warm breath as he let out an ecstatic gasp.

Stroke. Stroke. Stroke-stroke-stroke…

Sasuke's hand slid up and down like a well-oiled machine, aided by the water a touch of his excited boyfriend's own natural lubricant. As for Sasuke himself, he was already beginning to shudder with pleasure as Naruto ever so cruelly rubbed his finger around the tip of Sasuke's member. His knees buckling, Sasuke cracked an eye open to find Naruto doing the same.

"You ready?" he asked before biting his lip.

"Yeah…"

Thrusting his fingers slightly deeper into the blond, Sasuke gave Naruto a final stroke just as the blond did the same. They let out a simultaneous moan, their love blending with the rushing water and their sweat their entire bodies went rigid. For a time, they appeared frozen like statues, their bodies glistening as all evidence of their encounter was washed down the drain. Then, taking a few deep breaths, Sasuke stared down at his hand, which was still slowly stroking his boyfriend, as if to squeeze out any lingering drops. He soon found Naruto was doing the same, a fact that caused him to chuckle.

"We're getting better at this."

"Well… you are, at least," Naruto replied with a naughty grin.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "You mean I wasn't good before?"

Taken aback, the blond grimaced. "No-no! It's not that! I just mean… well, you don't seem distracted anymore…"

Placing a finger on his boyfriend's lips, Sasuke winked. "I know what you mean. Just teasing."

"Oh… I see," Naruto concluded, only to wince slightly. "Say, Sasuke… umm… could you do me a favor?"

"What is it?"

"Could you take your fingers out of my ass?"

Turning red, Sasuke quickly removed his hand from the blond's butt and looked to the side. "Sorry about that…"

"No problem. I mean, it felt good and everything, but it makes it a little hard to move," Naruto said, reaching around the Uchiha to shut off the water. "Now, what do you say we finish our studying?"

"Studying each other's more like it," Sasuke said, rolling his eyes.

Again, Naruto flashed a devilish smirk. "What'd you think I meant?"

XXXXX

Iruka stumbled into the living room, stunned by what he had just witnessed. As he expected, Kakashi was sitting reading the latest _Make Out Paradise_ novel, seemingly absorbed in the text. The brunet didn't have to say a word, though, before the masked-man clamped the book shut and turned his head towards his lover.

"What's wrong?" Kakashi asked, his voice betraying no emotion. It was more of an observation than anything else, his way of saying, 'I know you came here for a reason, so out with it.'

"Do you know what I just caught our sons doing?" Iruka asked in a mix of shock and indignation.

"Well, considering they were upstairs in Sasuke's room, I'll guess they were either studying or having sex," Kakashi responded nonchalantly.

"How can you be so calm about this?" Iruka asked exasperatedly as he collapsed on the couch.

"About our boys studying? Isn't that what they're supposed to be doing?" the silver-haired man asked, his eyes glinting playfully.

"You know what I mean, Kakashi," Iruka said, burying his head in his hands. "They stepped out of Sasuke's room nearly naked and hard as a rock, and yet Naruto seemed completely unfazed. How long have they been doing this kind of thing? Are they being safe?"

"You should know better than anyone. Remember when you cleaned Sasuke's room and found that big bag of condoms?"

"Of course I remember! I nearly had a heart attack!" the brunet exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air. "How many condoms could two kids possibly need?"

"Well, if they're as active as our sons," Kakashi responded, glancing upward as the sound of rushing water echoed throughout the house. Seeing the horrified expression on his lover's face, however, the masked man sighed. "Look, you and I both know there's an explanation for that. Naruto probably didn't know what kind to get and just bought them all."

"Yeah… that sounds like him all right," Iruka conceded with a chuckle. "You see my point, though, right? We're supposed to be a family here, and those two are up there copulating like rabbits."

"At least we don't have to worry about them getting pregnant," Kakashi added before placing a hand on the other man's shoulder. "Really, though, what's bothering you about this? You've known for a while that they've been active. I thought you were over that."

Hesitating a moment, Iruka nodded. "You're right… it's not that. It's just… I feel like he doesn't need me anymore. Before, I was always there for him to lean on, but today… when I passed him in the hallway, I felt like he'd slipped away from me."

His eyes growing a bit misty, the silver-haired man smiled. "He's growing up, Iruka. He's building relationships of his own, and he's learning how to get by on his own. That's just a part of life. But if you believe for even a second that you've lost him, you're wrong – Naruto loves you just as much as ever. He still needs you, Iruka – just in a different way. When he and Sasuke go through a rough patch down the road, you'll be the one he asks for advice. The only reason you feel unnecessary is because he's _happy._ That's nothing to get down about, Iruka – that means you've done your job."

His lips curling into a warm smile, Iruka gazed at his lover with glistening eyes. "Thanks, Kakashi."

"Think nothing of it."

No sooner had the couple finished their conversation than a pair of ecstatic moans reverberated throughout the house. Staring up in the general direction of the bathroom, Iruka and Kakashi were momentarily frozen in stunned silence. Finally, the silver-haired man looked to Iruka with a sheepish expression.

"That being said… I suppose it wouldn't _hurt_ to have a little talk with the boys."

XXXXX

_"D-daddy?"_

_"What is it, Naruto?"_

_"I-I had a b-b-bad dream…"_

_"Oh, come here…"_

Sitting up in bed, Iruka found himself staring at a young boy with wild, blond hair, standing in the doorway to his bedroom. The boy was wearing bright orange pajamas, and tucked under his arm was a stuffed fox. He rubbed his eyes, wiping away some terrified tears as he hobbled towards Iruka's bed.

_"Was it Kyuubi again?"_ Iruka asked, pulling the boy close to his bare chest. He could feel the child rub his head up and down in response. _"Oh, Naruto… I'm so sorry…"_

_"C-can I sleep w-with you tonight?" _the boy asked as he stared up at Iruka, his eyes red with tears.

_"Of course you can. I'll make sure those bad dreams stay away…"_

_"Th-thanks, Dad…"_

_"…Dad?"_

XXXXX

"Dad?"

The repeated word snapped Iruka out of his dream and back to the present. Somewhat startled, he looked around in confusion as he refamiliarized himself with his surroundings. He wasn't in his apartment in Mizu – he was in Konoha, Kakashi was lying beside him, fast asleep, and standing in his doorway was an older, teenage Naruto.

Rubbing his eyes, Iruka struggled to process the change. The dream had been so vivid that actually seeing his son in the flesh left the brunet disoriented. Seeing the grave expression on the vulpine boy's face, however, Iruka broke free from his fog and resumed 'father-mode.'

"What is it, Naruto?" Iruka asked in a hushed tone, trying not to wake the man beside him.

"I… I need to talk to you," Naruto replied. In the darkness, his face seemed particularly pale, as did the rest of his nearly naked body. Evidently, he hadn't bothered to get dressed in the dark, as he stood in just his orange briefs.

For a fraction of a second, Iruka considered asking if it could wait until morning. He then remembered his dream, with that younger version of Naruto coming crying to him. This was that same boy – he looked older, but on the inside he could still be just as scared, and right now, he needed Iruka just as much as ever.

He nodded. "Just let me throw on my robe. I'll meet you downstairs."

Swinging his legs over the side of the bed, Iruka reached for his robe hanging from the bedpost and slipped it on over his shoulder. Standing up, he cinched the belt around his waist, effectively covering himself before he started out of the room. Though still somewhat groggy, his concern for Naruto was enough of an incentive to keep him going as he tiptoed through the darkness. Turning the corner down the hallway, he nearly tripped over an empty laundry basket, with only his quick reflexes and the nearby handrail keeping him from tumbling headlong down the stairs.

_I'll have to yell at Sasuke tomorrow for leaving that out…_

Grumbling to himself, Iruka kicked the laundry basket off to the side and continued on his way, descending the stairs cautiously. Upon reaching the main floor, however, he let out a sigh of relief and resumed his stroll to the living room with ease. Stepping inside, his bare feet digging into the beige carpeting, Iruka found Naruto seated on the couch, still in his underwear, with a pillow clutched closely to his chest.

In the lamplight, Iruka could see all too clearly his son's worry. His face seemed ghostly, and his eyes appeared drained of their usual brightness, replaced only by a pained dull quality. Seeing that his father had entered the room, Naruto glanced up, though his expression remained just as vacant.

"I had the dream again…"

Sitting down beside his son, Iruka's stare remained fixed on the blond. "Kyuubi?"

The blond nodded silently. "It was different this time, though. He… he didn't kill anyone. Usually I just relive that night, only it's different victims – like you or Sasuke. I've learned how to cope with that, but this…"

"What did he do, exactly?" Iruka asked, placing his hand on Naruto's knee almost pleadingly.

Naruto closed his eyes, his body quivering as he took a deep breath. "He cried."

Iruka's eyes narrowed in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"I… I think he regrets what he did… wherever he is now," he continued wistfully. "I think he wants to make amends."

Frowning, Iruka rubbed his chin and considered his son's statement. He knew it sounded completely crazy, thinking that Kyuubi might be trying to apologize for his rampage from the grave, but then again, it didn't matter what _Iruka_ thought. This was Naruto's personal struggle, one that he had been dealing with since he was a child, and one that he finally seemed to be coming to terms with. Maybe this was just Naruto's coping mechanism, or maybe – just maybe – he was onto something.

"You know your dreams better than I do, Naruto. If this is something significant – and it sounds like it is – only you can decide what to do about it," Iruka concluded, flashing his son a warm smile. "Just know that you have my full support no matter what."

"That's kind of why I wanted to talk to you," Naruto admitted sheepishly. "I want to visit him… with Sasuke. So, I was wondering if maybe I could borrow the car after exams are over with…?"

"I don't see why not," the brunet said before adding sternly. "Just bring it back in one piece."

"Will do," the blond said before rising from the couch. He started back upstairs, pausing on the first step to glance back at his father. "Good night, Dad."

"Good night, Naruto."

* * *

Naruto and Sauske get hot and heavy in the shower, scarring Iruka in the process, Iruka and Naruto share a little father-son moment, and Naruto plans a little trip with his boyfriend. It all ends next time in _For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him._ Until then, dear readers, just remember: review!


	58. For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him Re

Well, it's been a long time coming, but here it is. The final chapter. This has been an incredible journey, everyone - your loyalty and your kind comments have been most helpful. 58 Chapters and hundreds of thousands of words later, it's complete. I want to thank you all one last time for reading and reviewing, and without further ado, I give you the conclusion to "For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him."

* * *

58. For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him: Reprise

"Come on, Naruto! Tell us already!" Lee pleaded irritably.

"Yeah, you've kept us waiting half a year – we want to know!" Kiba added, throwing his arm over his roommate's shoulder.

Sasuke shook his head at the sight. They had just finished their final exams for the year and were heading out of the building. Naruto was leading the pack, with Kiba, Hinata, Shikamaru, Lee, Gaara, and Choji crowding around impatiently. As for Sasuke, he hung back a few paces, trying his best not to laugh.

The source of this chaos? Naruto's encounter with Kisame on that January night. As yet, the blond had not told anyone what had happened, claiming that it was too traumatic for him to discuss just yet. At first, the others were satisfied with this response, and so they gave him a bit of space. Sasuke never once bought this excuse, though: he knew Naruto all-too well. He wanted to build the anticipation, to make his story all the more memorable when he finally shared it with the rest of the world.

Now, though, as they were leaving school for the summer, it was time. Kiba would be heading back home to Mizu for the next few months, Shikamaru and Choji would be leaving as well, and the others would likely be scattered on vacations and the like. It was now or never.

Turning around dramatically, Naruto grinned. "All right, I guess I've kept you guys waiting long enough. Gather round, children, and I will tell you the tale of how the gutsy ninja Naruto slew the monster Kisame."

Following the blond to the school's front lawn, the group sat down in a circle, their eyes widening in expectation. Though Sasuke hated to admit it, he was also quite curious as to what had actually happened that night, and he found it hard to mask his enthusiasm as he plopped down on the freshly cut grass.

Watching his boyfriend carefully, Sasuke found the afternoon sun shining above Naruto's head, giving him an almost angelic quality. It was like a beacon, drawing the attention of all those around him.

Clearing his throat, Naruto began. "All right, so Sasuke and I had just returned from our double date. Kiba and Hinata had headed home to get their freak on…"

"Naruto!" Kiba snapped as the Hyuuga beside him turned a deep shade of crimson.

The blond shrugged. "Just calling it as I saw it. Anyway, Sasuke and I wanted to go and generate some heat of our own, so we stepped inside, only to find everything was pitch black. No lights, nothing. Then Itachi appears with this blue, sharky freak. Sasuke told me to run, but before I could even act, this… Kiss-me –"

"Kisame," Sasuke corrected.

"Whatever his name was, he grabs from behind."

Lee leaned forward, his body stiffening with anxiety. "What'd you do?"

"I'm pretty sure he lived, Lee," Gaara replied, placing a hand on the mop-topped teen's shoulder. "Go on, Naruto."

"Well, I tried to escape – I bit his hand and started kicking, but Sasuke told me to stop. He had a plan, I guess. So this _Kisame_… he drags me upstairs and hauls me into Sasuke's room. At this point he has me at gunpoint, and I could tell he wasn't afraid to shoot me if things got serious," Naruto continued before leaning in, speaking in a hushed tone. "I knew I had to escape, though, since Sasuke was in danger. That's when I remembered the katana hanging on the wall."

Shikamaru smiled, rubbing his chin. "I remember that old thing… good thing it didn't get left behind in the move."

"Yeah, then you would've been screwed," Choji chimed in, tossing a handful of chips into his gaping maw.

"You don't know how right you are," Naruto added with a sigh. "Apparently, Kisame had plans besides killing me. He threw me onto the bed and started fiddling with my pants…"

Sasuke's hands involuntarily clenched into fists. "That _bastard_!"

"Well, obviously I wasn't about to let him have his way with me, so I kicked him in the face. That… well, let's just say it pissed him off. He rushed at me – he was much more violent this time. Can't say I blame him – I'd want this hot ass too," Naruto said, slapping his butt playfully.

"A-and that's when you grabbed the katana?" Hinata asked meekly.

The vulpine boy nodded. "Damn straight. It was right above the bed, so I just reached up and grabbed it. By time I'd unsheathed it and everything, Kisame was already on the bed and coming at me, so I spun and slit his throat. He never saw it coming."

"That was it, then?" Sasuke asked, looking somewhat disappointed.

"Well, yeah. He fell off the bed and sputtered for a bit, but he wasn't about to come back from something like that. It was actually pretty disgusting," Naruto murmured, scratching his cheek. "I didn't really think about it that long, though – I just knew I had to save Sasuke."

"So you ran outside, and that's when Itachi shot you," Shikamaru concluded with a nod. "Makes sense."

"Yeah, that's about it. I ran outside, saw Itachi, and I was going to kill him too – he shot me first, though. That's all I really remember until I woke up in the hospital."

Lee stood up, pumping a fist into the air. "That's _amazing_ Naruto! You fought him off with the power of youth!"

"Yes, Lee… we all know," Gaara mumbled as he rose up beside his boyfriend, his hands in his pockets. "Seriously, though, way to kick that pervert's ass, Naruto. We should get going, though – Temari's giving us a ride home."

"Ditto," Shikamaru chimed in as he stretched his arms over his head with a yawn. "I have to spend the rest of the day with her before I head out for the summer… you understand."

"Just remember to wrap it up," Sasuke said with a sly smile. Shikamaru completely ignored the comment, instead choosing to wave once over his shoulder as he headed for the street. There, Temari's cherry red car was pulling up to the curb and blaring on the horn.

"Hurry up, guys! Shika and I have to get a whole summer of lovin' out of the way!" the blonde shouted, drawing the attention of nearly all the remaining students on the Konoha High campus.

As he watched Gaara, Lee, and Shikamaru hop into the car and drive away, Sasuke heard several footsteps approaching from behind him. He felt a shiver run down his spine: fangirls. Prepared to fend for his life, the Uchiha spun his head around, only to realize that the crowd had gathered around one Choji Akimichi.

"Oh, Choji~!" a pink-haired teen cooed, throwing her arms around the chubby boy's shoulders. "I think it's _my_ turn to go out on a date with you, am I right?"

Another girl with a blonde ponytail elbowed Sakura in the face before embracing Choji herself. "Ignore Little Miss Forehead – it's _my_ turn."

Ignoring both of the girls, Choji shoved a final handful of chips into his mouth before staring dejectedly at the empty bag before him. Rising abruptly, he crumpled the bag into a ball and stared off into the distance dramatically. "I have to go, guys. More snacks await."

Starting off into the distance, Choji was pursued by a small crowd of desperate girls, all of whom clamored over the indifferent teen. Once they were out of sight, Sasuke let out a sigh of relief.

"That was a little too close for comfort."

"Well, they know you're taken now," Kiba commented, throwing his arm over Hinata's shoulder. "They're not going to mess with you now that you're openly dating Naruto."

"Speaking of which… we should probably get going, Sasuke," Naruto said, rising from the grass with a grunt. "I have a bit of a surprise for you today."

"Yikes," the Uchiha responded dryly.

"You lovebirds have a nice summer, all right?" Kiba said, waving to the couple with a broad grin. "I'll see you in September."

"Oh, don't pretend like you won't be visiting," Naruto replied, rolling his eyes. "You'll probably be here every weekend visiting Hinata."

"Well, only if she'll let me. What do you say?" the dog-boy asked, nudging his girlfriend playfully.

"U-umm… I'd like that…" Hinata answered quietly, tapping her index fingers together nervously.

"There you have it! I guess I'll see you in a week or two, then!" Kiba laughed as he waved goodbye.

Strolling across the lawn, Sasuke gave the Inuzuka a final glance before stepping into the parking lot. There, he gave Naruto a bemused look as they approached what was quite clearly Iruka's old, blue sedan.

"Just what are you planning?"

Naruto smiled softly as he unlocked the door. "You'll see."

"I know… you're going to drive me out to the middle of nowhere and leave me for dead. I should've known it would end this way," Sasuke concluded in a monotone as he climbed into the passenger seat. "At least I'll die happy, I suppose."

"That's a sweet. A bit morbid, but sweet," Naruto said, closing the door on the opposite side. He rifled between the seats briefly before pulling out a CD: _The Best of Simon and Garfunkel._ "Hope you're ready for an hour of my terrible singing."

"Only if I can sing along."

Grinning, Naruto turned the ignition and popped in the CD. As the haunting melodies of 'The Sound of Silence' drifted from the speakers, the blond pulled the car out of the parking lot and started out on the road. Where they were going, Sasuke had no idea.

An hour passed far faster than Sasuke ever could have imagined. Sitting beside his boyfriend, singing the songs of his favorite band, all while watching the beautiful scenery on that peaceful summer afternoon – it was as close to perfect as the Uchiha felt he'd ever get. He had meant what he said – if he were to die at that moment, he would have no regrets.

Lush fields of long grass, dense forests with trees practically blocking out the skies, hills as far as the eye could see, and fluffy clouds that only a friend of Shikamaru's could _truly_ appreciate: they were but a few of the sights that graced Sasuke's vision on the trip. All the while, he and Naruto sang. Poorly.

In all honesty, Naruto's voice not exactly _bad_ – he was just overenthusiastic, as in most things. Still, not even the sharpest note or the worst rhythm could've ruined Sasuke's mood at that moment. 'I am a Rock,' 'Cecilia,' 'Homeward Bound, 'Like a Bridge Over Troubled Water' – together, he and Naruto warbled through these classics, their voices ringing out through the opened windows as they drove by.

Turning to each other in unison, they both grinned as they sang, "Coo-Coo-cachoo, Mrs. Robinson, Jesus loves you more than you will know…_ wo wo wo."_

"What does that even mean? 'Coo-coo-cachoo?" Naruto asked as the song continued in the background.

Sasuke shrugged. "Does it really matter?"

"Well, if 'coo-coo-cachoo' is Swahili for 'I hate your freakin' guts,' then yes, it matters," Naruto said defensively.

"I think the context suggests differently."

"Maybe that was the idea. Maybe it's all just an inside joke – it's such a happy song, but it's really about something dark and seedy."

Sasuke shook his head. "You do realize it's about a married woman having an affair with a younger guy, right?"

"Get out… is the younger guy Joe DiMaggio?" Naruto asked, looking quite perplexed.

"No, Naruto," Sasuke replied. Just as he was about to explain the entire history of the song and its various iterations, however, a new song began. _Their_ song. "Wait. Just listen."

Naruto, apparently in no mood to obey orders, instead opened his mouth. Instead of the exuberant warbling of his previous efforts, though, what came out was a sweet, soft voice – one that showed a caring and restraint that struck a chord somewhere deep within Sasuke. He listened, enraptured.

"What a dream I had  
Pressed in organdy  
Clothed in crinoline  
Of smoky burgundy  
Softer than the rain

I wandered empty streets down  
Past the shop displays  
I heard cathedral bells  
Dripping down the alleyways  
As I walked on

And when you ran to me, your  
Cheeks flushed with the night  
We walked on frosted fields  
Of juniper and lamplight  
I held your hand

And when I awoke  
And felt you warm and near  
I kissed your honey hair  
With my grateful tears  
Oh, I love you girl  
Oh, I love you…"

As the final notes to 'For Emily, Whenever I May Find Her' faded out, Sasuke realized for the first time that the car had stopped. Somehow, lost in the song and his boyfriend's eyes, he had become oblivious to all else around them. Looking around in confusion, he found they were parked outside a graveyard, with a nearby sign reading 'Mizu Cemetery.'

"Naruto? What are we doing here?" the Uchiha asked, momentarily fearing that his joke earlier had been correct.

"There's someone I want you to meet," Naruto replied, pushing open the car door. "Come on. It won't take long."

Silently, Sasuke obeyed and stepped out of the car. A cool breeze blew by, rustling some of the leaves on the surrounding trees. Together, he and Naruto started up the grassy hill into the cemetery, passing by row after row of graves as they went. Sasuke's eyes wandered about, taking in the scene of eerie serenity. There was no one else there that day – no one living, at least. Just hundreds of bodies buried six feet under, lost in eternal slumber.

A few of the graves had flowers, while others appeared as though no one had visited them in years. The further along the path they went, the shoddier the graves became, with many bearing illegible tombstones, cracked monuments, and dead grass. It pained Sasuke, seeing such testaments to human life left in such disarray.

Then, just as soon as he had started, Naruto stopped. They were near the end of the cemetery, near an ill-kept pond covered with algae. A crow stood nearby, picking at the ground while keeping a wary eye on the two teens. Sasuke was more interested in what the blond was staring at, however: a pair of graves, seated side-by-side. One, while worn, was legible, with only a few cracks in the tombstone. The other, however, looked as though it had met with constant vandalism over the years. The very plain monument had been shipped, stained, scratched, and covered with graffiti.

Sasuke didn't say a word, but simply watched the graves momentarily, waiting for Naruto to make the first move. This was his moment – this was something he had been waiting to confront for practically his entire life. It wasn't Sasuke's place to break the silence.

Finally, the blond took a deep breath. "Mom… Dad… there's someone I'd like you to meet. This is Sasuke Uchiha – my boyfriend."

A pause.

"I know you probably weren't expecting this… but, this is how it is. I'm sure if you could, you'd tell me you were happy for me. And I am happy – _we_ are… I just thought you should know that."

Another pause. Longer this time. Naruto appeared to be struggling deeply to speak his mind.

"And… Dad… I forgive you. I can't speak for everyone you hurt that day… I don't think many of them will forget what happened soon, because none of them remember you as the man Mom married – to them, you're just a murderer. But, at the very least, you can rest knowing that your son is happy, and that he's willing to move on."

Kneeling down, Naruto kissed his fingers and pressed them against both graves, one at a time. He remained that way for a time in silent prayer. What he was thinking, Sasuke would never know.

When he finally stood up once more, the blond was smiling softly. He leaned forward and planted a brief kiss on Sasuke's lips. "Shall we go?"

"Are you ready?" Sasuke asked, clasping his boyfriend's hand.

"Yeah. I'm ready."

With that, Naruto and Sasuke started out of the Mizu Cemetery, the sun peeking through the trees overhead. Walking hand in hand with the blond, Sasuke felt a stirring of warmth within. It was the first day of the rest of his life – and what a good life it was.

The End.

* * *

Thanks for reading, everyone!


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